Running head: CLASSICAL THEORIES IN THE WORKPLACE 1

Classical Theories in the Workplace

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To enhance my accomplishment as a line manager of a manufacturing company I

designed a work program for the product line machine operators, specialized in the machines.

After two weeks of operation, I found it difficult to work with the assigned individuals, since I

cannot instruct the whole team rather, I focus on instructing each operator individually. I have

tried to establish common instruction point for them but all is in vain. Coordination is becoming

a big challenge. It has resulted in chaotic scene where everybody does what they feel like doing.

The context can take the perspective of two theorists, Durkheim and Marx. Durkheim explains

the cause of such conflict as either egoism or loss of sense due to the repetitive tasks which cause

societal anomie. Karl Marx could explain the same phenomenon through theory of alienation, the

operators could have disagreed with feudal rule. I agree with Durkheim's theory of

functionalism, anomie, and division of labor since the operators have gotten used to the work

programs and found the work program as a normal routine and are then less committed or does

not find sense in further instructions on routine activities.

Foremost, I agree with Durkheim that the source of the incorporation is lack of solidarity

among the operators since the operators are independent of each other. Shared beliefs bring

people together into achieving one goal. With the differential gap in machine operation, every

person relies on individual knowledge which increases drift among people. According to

Durkheim interdependence is an enemy of solidarity. Mechanical solidarity could be created

through creation of close relationship between the management and machine operators.

Concurrently, operator to operator relationships create linked coordination and dependency. Too

much of Division of Labor leads to disorganized groups due to arising complexity issues.

Concurrently, I agree with Durkheim in the concept of anomie through division of labor.

Durkheim attributes anomie to insufficient normative regulations. In the perspective, people in a

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specified social or economic environment are governed with common norms. With the

introduction of new work programs, people develop resistance to change or alienate from the

common societal governance of goals. Specialization drifts people within a given environment to

specific or individual goals rather than bringing in the factor of dependence in a system. Work in

the case is broken down and each worker returns to same machine daily. The routine culture has

made the operator to lose track of the goals or become dull on the repetitive jobs. Subsequently,

the operators develop familiarity and they feel they are self-sufficient for the operation task. In

this case they develop egoism and resist other operator’s or manager’s instructions. The division

of labor leads to work environment anomies.

In addition, Durkheim proves that occupational groups are essential to building a

cohesive society. Durkheim explains on anomic division of labor as a solvable issue that requires

the decision-makers to create a sense of collective responsibility. People would like to identify

with a functional group with similar interests. Introducing similar component or common

interaction background or a point of agreement helps in the creation of solidary groups. In this

case, the operators lacked a point of agreement to work in unity. The work process shifted from

corporate, collective achievement; the operators could have made agreements and made

arrangements to set specific and general objectives to create connectivity within the operating

environment.

Karly Marx could have described the workers drift from cooperation as a factor of social

class alienations. He describes one societal is a means of production and compared the lower

class as the one who works the means. In objection to Durkheim where interdependence in

division of labor is a major source of conflict, Karl, In the assertation, argued that people are

clustered in some social class which creates the difference in perspectives. When there is
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supervision in work process as the case of managing the machine operators, the workers' mind

becomes redundant which causes them to function without reasoning. The repetitive action

reduces focus on a specific job objective. In most cases, the classes in the case, managers and

operators, creates job satisfaction in a given stratification. The egocentric nature of job

satisfaction limits people to listen from certain authority. Workers can values wages, good

working condition or even promotions while on the other hand the manager tries to force or exert

pressure on performance eon operation. At some point, the conflict will arise. Marx's theory

views the work conflict as a factor of employee alienation due to managers' misunderstanding of

employee needs.

As well as there is an issue of social class, there should be an authority to guide the work

process. For a period of time operators were responsive to the instructions and authority. They

are always dependent on the design meaning they still appreciate the order of operation. The

class cannot be a barrier to production if they can focus on the work process. It is a fact that

people can balance social status for the grounds of achieving unity in the work process. Rather,

different classes could sit down and obtain a point of dependence. Operators can rely one

manager to make decision, while managers can rely on operators for job completion. In

mutuality, the work organization needs to intertwine to produce a favorable work environment in

which coordination is paramount among classes. The introduction of a work program in the case

could not assert nothing less than the improvement in the work process.

More so, Karl Marx additionally could attribute the source of conflicts to psychological

dynamism or plurality of interest. Each Operator intends to survive in the capitalist kind of

environment. The focus on survival and well-being prompts the operators to think or subject

themselves to performing a job and go. In the situation, the operators lose access to the emotional
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connection with other people. People are then turned to product objects rather than emotional

being which causes them to alienate from one another and authority. The self-sustaining actions

triggers the sense of division in psychic value. Based on the argument, the workplace conflict in

a human normalcy rather than induced action. In addition, the alienation action is internally

stimulated and not imposed by any other individual.

The organization organized a weekly 3-hour teambuilding. On approaching each

operator, they admitted that they are solemnly so attached to work program and production

targets, so the focus on their job limits the interaction moment. In the case, the problem is an

interaction time because every operator comes in and performs according to work program and

leaves. The aspect of “do and go” limits collective coordination in the work which could have

increased the management task since it involves instructing individuals separately rather than as

a whole team. While psychological dynamism can explain the internally driven alienation,

economic pressure is a pressure which drives the people to work more, the operators work on

overtime and sometimes desire to work for more hours than they are expected. The major

problem is establishing connection between each other.

Karl Marx describes capitalism in that people become commercial objects in a market, in

this case the operator’s skills are a market commodity that is traded with money. The labor and

work should be a social-economic function in society. The social-economic in the perspective

entails people uniting and working for one goal. The form of ideology drifts the people’s

mentality to leads to separation of workers from humanity. In the light of the orientation, if a

worker cannot resolve an issue they are replaced with another person. With the competition

every member tries to overdo another.

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While commercialization of human labor exists, in the case, managers designed an

initiative to approach the employees and further established welfare teams in which managers are

mere members while operators are the leaders. Regardless of the welfare tools, managers

conduct training on operations and further recommend shared ideas for skill and knowledge

acquisition.

The fact that the operators are not responding to common orientation point to work

instructions could be explained contemporarily Durkheim theory of functionalism, anomie, and

division of labor because the division of labor has created specialization and repetitive nature of

work. The operators are, therefore, independent to one another which reduces the value on social

interactions or group objective approaches. According to Durkheim descriptions anomie division

of labor is a cause of disunity in our work environment.