A partial partnership? The contradictions of cooperation at PowerCo

Hoskin, J; Johnstone, S; Ackers, P

doi:10.1057/978-1-137-42772-4_9

A partial partnership? The contradictions of cooperation at PowerCo

Lookup NU author(s): Jonathan Hoskin, Dr Stewart Johnstone

Downloads

Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.

Abstract

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2016. All rights reserved. This chapter examines partnership in the context of a British utility organisation which is referred to by the pseudonym “PowerCo”. The case study examined partnership over a 13-year period (2000-2013). Liberal market economies such as the UK are often believed to provide an inhospitable institutional environment for meaningful workplace partnership to fl ourish because of factors including unstable markets, weak trade unions and the absence of regulatory or state support (Hall and Soskice 2001). However, PowerCo provided an interesting contrast to these stereotypical characteristics associated with liberal market capitalism: The organisation off ered highly skilled and long-term employment in a stable market place, within a high-density trade union environment, and regulatory support for partnership working.