Making transition, remaking workers : market and privatisation reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina : the case of Energoinvest (1988-2008)
This thesis focuses on the social transformations that accompanied market and privatisation reforms in the late- and post-Yugoslav space. It argues that in the historical shift from state socialism to the post-Yugoslav economic system, it was not only work relations that changed, but with them, the very meaning of work, productivity, and property; as workers' role in the workplace was remade, so was workers' identity. Focussing on the case of a prominent Yugoslav exporting company (Energoinvest) - which was embedded in global trade and a non-aligned economic world for much of the socialist period - it shows that a key intent of market and privatisation reforms from the late 1980s to the early 2000s was the (re)shaping of workers' identity. The thesis uses the space of the industrial workplace - as imagined by experts, organised by companies, and experienced and remade by workers - to provide a grounded case study to show how the reformulation of workers' identity has played out over subsequent economic transitions. Drawing upon oral history interviews, archival, and workplace material, the thesis claims that the three waves of privatisation and market reforms in Bosnia (in 1989, in 1997, and in 2002) - from
Calori, A.
Making transition, remaking workers : market and privatisation reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina : the case of Energoinvest (1988-2008). This thesis focuses on the social transformations that accompanied market and privatisation reforms in the late- and post-Yugoslav space. It argues that in the historical shift from state socialism to the post-Yugoslav economic system, it was not only work relations that changed, but with them, the very meaning of work, productivity, and property; as workers' role in the workplace was remade, so was workers' identity. Focussing on the case of a prominent Yugoslav exporting company (Energoinvest) - which was embedded in global trade and a non-aligned economic world for much of the socialist period - it shows that a key intent of market and privatisation reforms from the late 1980s to the early 2000s was the (re)shaping of workers' identity. The thesis uses the space of the industrial workplace - as imagined by experts, organised by companies, and experienced and remade by workers - to provide a grounded case study to show how the reformulation of workers' identity has played out over subsequent economic transitions. Drawing upon oral history interviews, archival, and workplace material, the thesis claims that the three waves of privatisation and market reforms in Bosnia (in 1989, in 1997, and in 2002) - from
making transition remake worker market reform bosnia_herzegovina case focus social_transformation accompany market reform late post yugoslav space argues historical shift state socialism post yugoslav economic system work relation change mean work productivity property worker role workplace worker identity focussing case prominent yugoslav export company embed global trade non economic world much socialist period show key intent market reform shape worker identity space industrial workplace imagined expert organise company experience worker provide ground case_study show reformulation worker identity play subsequent economic transition drawing_upon oral_history_interview archival workplace material claim wave market reform