Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Emotional & Aesthetic Labour
Emotional & Aesthetic Labour
C16th...
Society of Jesus selected priests with a pleasing manner of
speech and verbal facility, and also good appearance in the
absence of any notable ugliness, disfigurement or deformity
(Hopfl 2000, p.2034).
C19th...
Model Banker - senior banker described as being handsome
with hazel eyes, aquiline nose, iron-grey hair, firm
moustache, oval chin [and] cheeks slightly tinged with red
(McKinley 2002: p. 607).
C20th...
white-collar female department store worker - focuses on the
customer attracting the customer with modulated voice,
artful attire and stance
(Wright Mills 1951: p.175).
Aesthetic labour is a key feature
of employees wage effort
bargaining.
Like emotional labour different
looks can be required of
employees throughout their
aesthetic labouring by different
organisations who are targeting
different market segments
(Hochschild 1983, Pettinger 2004
Warhurst and Nickson, 2007).
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The personnel manager of a hotel was
implementing changes in working practices
aimed at the reception staff, but complained:
'they just won't smile.'
Workplaces as diverse as
call centres,
training consultants,
investment banks
accountants
all recruit, train and promote staff on their emotional
and aesthetic skills
(McDowell, 1997; Trethewey, 1999; Anderson-Gough et al., 2000;
Thompson et al., 2001).
If an employer is essentially looking for
someone who will project the right image....
(Hochschild, 1983; Paules, 1991; Warhurst and Nickson, 2001; Nickson et al., 2001;
Thompson et al., 2001).