From Societal to Managerial Corporatism: New Forms of Work Organization as a Transformation Vehicle

The 'deconstruction' of the so-called Swedish model -a form of corporatism at the societal level has been very much discussed. New forms of work organization in combination with a rapid development of company level schemes for bonuses, profit-sharing, convertibles and employee share ownership may hit the core of the model, the solidaristic wage policy. In order to maintain the Swedish model, more or less modified, the unions probably have to improve their knowledge of work organization development, support their local bodies and make negotiations on new forms of work organization possible. To be able to prevent increasingly arbitrary wage differences the unions have to develop job classification systems, local job evaluation systems and overall wage statistics. If the unions do not succeed in this policy, the Swedish model will convert into a Japanese form of industrial relations, i.e. managerial corporatism.