Division of the Social Sciences
University of Minnesota, Morris
Labor Market, Technological Change & Skill Formation
(Mgmt 4502)
MWF: 1:00 PM – 2:05 PM
Class: 203 Imholte Hall
Dr. Cyrus Bina
Office: Camden Hall 206
Phone & Voicemail: 589-6193
Fax: 589-6117
E-mail: binac@umn.edu
Office Hours: MW: 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM and/or by appointment
TEXTBOOKS:
Harry Braverman, Labor and Monopoly Capital: The Degradation of Work in the Twentieth Century, New Edition, New York: Monthly Review Press, 1998.
Dale Neef, G. Anthony Siesfeld, and Jacquelyn Cefola (eds.) The Economic Impact of Knowledge, Boston: Butterworth-Heinemann, 1998.
Lee W. McKnight, Paul M. Vaaler, and Paul L. Katz (eds.) Creative Destruction: Business Survival Strategies in the Global Internet Economy, Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2001.
Cyrus Bina and Chuck Davis, “Globalization, Technology, and Skill Formation in Capitalism,” in Baiman, et al. (eds.) Political Economy and Contemporary Capitalism, Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe Publishers, 2000 [on reserve at Briggs Library].
Catalog Description: The change of technology in relation to the formation of skills and transformation of the regional labor markets globally. ‘Skilling’ and ‘deskilling’ of labor and their intimate relationship with the transformation of technology in contemporary capitalism.
This course provides a somewhat advanced coverage of the development and transformation of technology through competition and its impact on ‘deskilling’ and new ‘skill formation in the business enterprises, in particular and contemporary economy, in general. Technological change is broadly defined in order to capture the changes in the structure, institutions, and organizations, in addition to the classical meaning of the term. Finally, the meaning of ‘skill’ vis-à-vis technology shall be contrasted with its counterpart in the previous systems of production. In this connection, this seminar will shed light on the dynamics of the contemporary hyper-competitive, technology-driven, fast-paced, uncertain world of business. Transnational Enterprise is a desirable background but not indispensable (prereq. Mgmt 2102, Eco.1111, Econ. 1112).
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
1. Meaning and Impact of Technology in Contemporary Capitalism.
2. Dynamics of Technological Change in the Global Arena.
3. Competition and Hyper-Competition.
4. Meaning and Function of ‘Knowledge’ in Today’s World.
5. Meaning of ‘Skill’ in Contemporary Economy.
6. Disposability of ‘Skills’ and Meaning of ‘Deskilling’.
7. The Role of Technology and Meaning of Uncertainty in Today’s World.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
While the text would establish the basic groundwork for this course, supplemental lecture materials and thus extended class discussions are essential parts of the study. As a result, class participation and class discussions carry considerable weight in the formation of final grade. In addition to a midterm and a final exam, there will be an oral project on an agreed-upon topic relevant to this seminar. There will be class assignments from the textual materials in this course.
GRADE DISTRIBUTION:
Midterm Exam: ……………………………………………….30%
Final Exam: ………………………………………………….. 30%
Research Project: …………….…………………………….… 30%
Class Participation: ………………………………………….. 10%
The grading scale shall follow these intervals:
A: 94 – 100 A-: 90 – 93 B+: 87 – 89
B: 83 – 86 B-: 80 – 82 C+: 76 – 79
C: 72 – 75 C: 68 – 71 D+: 64 – 67
D: 60 – 63 F: 60—and below.
Week One: Introducing the Overall context of the Seminar; Harry Braverman, Labor and Monopoly Capital [HB], Ch. 3 and Ch. 5: ‘The Division of Labor,’ ‘The Primary Effects of Scientific Management.’
Week Two: [HB], Ch. 9 and Ch. 10: ‘Machinery,’ ‘Further Effects of Management and
Technology on the Division of Labor;’ Dale Neef, et al., The Economic Impact of
Knowledge [DN], Ch. 1: ‘Uncertainty and Technological Change.’
Week Three: [HB], Ch. 20: ‘The Final Note on Skill,’ [DN], Ch. 2 and Ch. 3: ‘Falling
Behind: The Productivity Problem,’ ‘Science, Economic Growth, and Public Policy.’
[DN], Ch. 9 and Ch. 13: ‘The Idea of Ideas,’ ‘Measuring the
Week Six: [DN], Ch 14: ‘Productivity, R&D, and Data Constraint,’ Bina and Davis,
‘Globalization, Technology, and Skill Formation in Capitalism.’
Week Seven: [DN], Ch. 17: ‘Measuring and Managing Technological Knowledge,’
Lee W. McKnight, et al., Creative Destruction [LWM], Ch. 2: ‘Innovation and
Creative Destruction.’
Review of the Materials
Week Eight:
Projects’ Presentations