Workers in a labyrinth: Jobs and survival in a bank bureaucracy (Landmark studies)

Hi, my name is Michael, I have a social sciences PhD, and I just started working in a bank. I could use all the help I can get, so when I saw this book referenced in the abysmal Manufacturing Morals, and a used copy was a steal, I grabbed it..

That said, this is Jackall’s anthropology dissertation from 1973, so a few things have changed in the 46 years. Jackall took as his object of study clerks working for a major New York City based bank. His theoretical paradigm was the alienation of labor of white collar workers. While clerks may not be operating a machine as part of an assembly line, they do a regularized task that is one module of a larger financial scheme, they manipulate million dollar accounts for $400 a month (about $2300 in 2019 dollars), and their working lives are Taylorized to the nth degree.

With a paradigm like alienation of labor, there’s not much to say except “yup, it’s alienated.” Jackall, almost parenthetically, manages to capture some interesting insights into the period. His interview subjects are 90% female, their managers 90% male, and this is the first period where that is starting to change. There’s a conflict between button-down financial culture and the more freewheeling counter-culture, or even just 70s fashion. And most interestingly, there’s conflict between ‘authoritarian managers’ who use shouting and discipline to enforce order, and ‘friendly managers’ who cultivate a network of informers behind a smiling face.

Workers in a Labyrinth is obsolete and not particularly insightful, but it is positively breezy for a monograph, and a moderate pleasure to read, at least for me. Your value may vary.