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Business & Economics Media & Communications Industries

Smiling Down the Line

Info-Service Work in the Global Economy

by (author) Bob Russell

Publisher
University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division
Initial publish date
Sep 2009
Category
Media & Communications Industries
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781442639942
    Publish Date
    Sep 2009
    List Price
    $70
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781442609815
    Publish Date
    Sep 2009
    List Price
    $45.95
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781442697232
    Publish Date
    Sep 2009
    List Price
    $34.95
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781442697850
    Publish Date
    Dec 2009
    List Price
    $84

Classroom Resources

Where to buy it

Out of print

This edition is not currently available in bookstores. Check your local library or search for used copies at Abebooks.

Description

Just as textile mills and automotive assembly plants have symbolized previous economic eras, the call centre stands as a potent reminder of the importance of information in contemporary economies. Bob Russell's Smiling Down the Line theorizes call centre work as info-service employment and looks at the effects of ever-changing technologies on service work, its associated skills, and the ways in which it is managed. Russell also considers globalization and contemporary managerial practices as centres are outsourced to poorer countries such as India and as new forms of management are introduced, refined, and discarded.

Invoking extensive labour force surveys and interviews from Australia and India, Russell examines employee representation, work intensity, stress, emotional labour, and job skills in the call centre work environment. The cross-national approach of Smiling Down the Line highlights the effects of globalization and scrutinizes the similarities and differences that exist in info-service work between different industries and in different countries.

About the author

Bob Russell is an associate professor in the Department of Employment Relations at Griffith Business School, Griffith University.

Bob Russell's profile page

Editorial Reviews

'Smiling Down the Line is highly recommended for any scholar interested in the transformation of globalized work, the effects of information and communication technologies on the technical and social division of labour, and managerial attempts to control labour process in the new economy... it stands out due to its rigour and in-depth analysis of info-services work in call centres and as a portrait of work and employment in contemporary capitalism.'

British Journal of Industrial Relations: vol49:02:2011