Suffering in Public? Doing Security in Times of Crisis

The article looks at the nature and evolution of the work of the private security guard, as of 2011. The author discusses the results of her 2009-2010 study of managers and employees at private security companies in Germany. She says the private security industry has expanded sharply in Germany and...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Briken, Kendra (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2011
In: Social justice
Year: 2011, Volume: 38, Issue: 1/2, Pages: 128-145
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Keywords:
Contingent employment
Employees
Employment
Private police
Private security services
Security personnel
Service sector
Sociology of work
Taylorism (Management)
Temporary employment
Description
Summary:The article looks at the nature and evolution of the work of the private security guard, as of 2011. The author discusses the results of her 2009-2010 study of managers and employees at private security companies in Germany. She says the private security industry has expanded sharply in Germany and globally, citing factors including outsourcing. She notes that while security guard has become officially recognized as a profession in Germany, most private security guards continue to face contingent working conditions, with temporary contracts and low wages typical. She analyzes their work in the context of Taylorism, or scientific human resource management, and of the general conditions of service-sector work.