SOCIOLOGY OF THE COMPANY AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Davide BUBBICO SOCIOLOGY OF THE COMPANY AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

0312300060
DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL STUDIES
EQF6
SOCIOLOGY
2024/2025

YEAR OF COURSE 3
YEAR OF DIDACTIC SYSTEM 2019
AUTUMN SEMESTER
CFUHOURSACTIVITY
640LESSONS
Objectives
THE TEACHING AIMS TO PROVIDE A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK OF THE ORIGIN OF ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY, OF THE COMPANY AS AN ORGANIZATION AND AS A FIELD OF ACTION OF DIFFERENT ACTORS THAT MODIFY OR CONDITION ITS BEHAVIOR BOTH WITHIN THE ORGANIZATIONAL PLOTS AND EXTERNAL ON THE MARKET. IN THIS CONTEXT, INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS REPRESENT A FUNDAMENTAL DIMENSION TO UNDERSTAND ALSO THE CONCRETE FUNCTIONING IN PARTICULAR OF MEDIUM AND LARGE ENTERPRISES, IN RELATION TO INTERNAL ORGANIZATIONAL ASPECTS BUT ALSO TO THE MORE GENERAL SYSTEM OF REPRESENTATION OF INTERESTS.


THE COMPANY MUST BE INCLUDED, IN ITS PRODUCTIVE AND ORGANIZATIONAL ACTIVITY, AS ORGANIZATION CONDITIONED BY CULTURAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT IN WHICH IT IS LOCATED, AS FROM THE UNION PRACTICES THAT TAKE PLACE IN IT. THE EVOLUTION OF TRADE UNION RELATIONS TOWARDS THE MOST PARTICIPATORY AND LEAST CONFRONTATIONAL MODELS IF TODAY THERE IS THE MOST EVIDENT TREND ALL WITHIN THE INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS SYSTEM NOT COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED THE FRAMEWORK. THE FIRM AS A CONFLICTUAL SPACE IN WHICH DIFFERENT ACTORS OPERATE, NOT ONLY THE UNIONS, WHIT DIFFERENT INTERESTS, REMAINS A PRIVILEGED FIELD FOR THE ANALYSIS OF CONFLICTUAL DYNAMICS IN THE ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT.

FOR THE PURPOSE OF COGNITIVE SKILLS, THE COURSE INTENDS TO PROVIDE TOOLS FOR THE DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF ENTERPRISES FROM A STATISTIC POINT OF VIEW AND ON THE BASIS OF OTHER SOURCES (MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATIONS, ADMINISTRATIVE DATABASES, ETC.) AND OF THE MAIN FEATURES OF THE INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS SYSTEM AT NATIONAL LEVEL.
THE AIM IS TO PROVIDE THE STUDENT WITH THE TOOLS FOR A ANALYSIS OF THE MAIN STAGES OF THE FIRMS DEVELOPMENT AND OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS WHICH, ALTHOUGH WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE ITALIAN CASE, WILL BE ANALYZED IN AN INTERNATIONAL COMPARATIVE FRAMEWORK.
Prerequisites
NOBODY, EVEN IF THOSE WHO HAVE ALREADY TAKEN THE EXAM OF ECONOMIC SOCIOLOGY CAN BETTER LEARNING OF THE TOPICS COVERED IN THE COURSE.
Contents
THE FIRST PART OF THE COURSE WILL BE DEDICATED TO THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE ORIGIN OF FIRMS AND ITS EVOLUTION OVER THE COURSE OF RECENT CENTURIES, IN PARTICULAR WITH THE ADVENT OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION AND CAPITALIST ECONOMIES. THE EVOLUTION OF THE BUSINESS ACTIVITY WILL BE INVESTIGATED UNDER DIFFERENT PROFILES ALSO TO UNDERSTAND ITS SUBSEQUENT DEVELOPMENT AND THE AFFIRMATION OF THE BIG INDUSTRY AND OF THE THEORY OF SHAREHOLDER VALUE (PROFIT MAXIMIZATION) AND OF THE SUBSEQUENT ADVENT OF CRITICAL THEORIES, FOR EXAMPLE THE THEORY OF STAKEHOLDER’S VALUE.
OVER TIME, COMPANIES HAVE TAKEN ON DIFFERENT CONFIGURATIONS, INFLUENCED BY THE HISTORICAL AND INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT OF EACH COUNTRY. THE PLURALITY OF FORMS OF FIRMS IS THE MOST EVIDENT DATA BOTH FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF THE ORIGIN OF THE BUSINESS, AND IN RELATION TO ITS ORGANIZATION. THE SAME APPLIES, TO A GREATER EXTENT, TO INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS.
THE COURSE WILL DEAL WITH THE FOLLOWING TOPICS IN THE FIRST PART: THE FIRM BETWEEN ECONOMICS AND SOCIOLOGY; THE HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ITALY IN THE 20TH CENTURY; THE DEFINITION OF THE COMPANY AND THE MEASUREMENT PROBLEMS (SOURCES); HOW FIRMS BORN AND THE CONCEPT OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP; THE SMALL FAMILY BUSINESS AND THE CONCEPT OF SELF-ENTREPRENEURSHIP; LARGE ENTERPRISES AND MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES; PLATFORM CAPITALISM AND GIG ECONOMY ENTERPRISES; THE SOCIAL ENTERPRISE AND THE NON-PROFIT ECONOMY; CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND IRRESPONSIBLE FIRMS; FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP; FOREIGN ENTREPRENEURSHIP; IRREGULAR ENTREPRENEURSHIP; THE LOCAL FIRMS AND INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS; START-UP COMPANIES.
IN THE SECOND PART, TO WHICH A MORE LIMITED PART OF THE COURSE IS DEDICATED, THE THEME WILL BE THAT OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS AND OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ASSOCIATIONS REPRESENTING THE INTERESTS (TRADE UNIONS OF WORKERS AND COMPANIES) WITH A SPECIFIC FOCUS ON THE ITALIAN CASE. TO THIS END, THE EVOLUTION OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS, BETWEEN COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AND COMPANY-LEVEL BARGAINING, WILL BE INVESTIGATED MORE GENERALLY IN CONSIDERATION OF THE RECENT EVOLUTION OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS, IN ITALY AS IN EUROPE, TOWARDS CONCERTATION MODEL.

SPECIFICALLY, IN THIS SECOND PART OF THE COURSE, THE TOPICS WILL BE: NATURE AND ORIGIN OF ASSOCIATIONS REPRESENTING INTERESTS; THE INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS SYSTEM IN ITALY AND EUROPE; COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AND SECOND LEVEL BARGAINING; SOCIAL BARGAINING; BUSINESS CRISES AND PUBLIC POLICIES.
Teaching Methods
THE COURSE WILL CONSIST OF LECTURES, SEMINAR ACTIVITIES AND EXERCISES IN VIEW OF THE FINAL EXAM. THE LECTURES WILL BE DEDICATED TO DEEPENING THE ASPECTS MENTIONED ABOVE AND TO ILLUSTRATING THE RESULTS OF EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ON THE TOPICS COVERED. THE SEMINAR ACTIVITIES WILL BE CARRIED OUT WITH RESEARCHERS AS AUTHORS OF PUBLICATIONS RELATING TO THE COURSE SUBJECTS. THE EXERCISES IN WRITTEN FORM WILL INSTEAD SERVE TO HELP A BETTER APPROACH TO THE FINAL PHASE OF THE EXAM.
Verification of learning
THE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE TEACHING OBJECTIVES IS CERTIFIED BY AN EVALUATION EXAM, WHICH PROVIDES FOR A RATING UP TO 30 POINTS (IN CENTS), WITH A MINIMUM OF 18 FOR PASSING THE EXAM. THE EXAM INCLUDES A WRITTEN TEST AND AN POSSIBLE ORAL SUPPLEMENT WHICH TAKES PLACE ON DIFFERENT DAYS. IN ANY CASE, EVEN IF THE STUDENT PROCEEDS TO ACCEPT THE GRADE ASSIGNED TO THE WRITING, HE WILL STILL HAVE TO SEE THE TASK AND THE TEACHER'S OBSERVATIONS. THE ORAL INTEGRATION IS THEREFORE OPTIONAL AND COULD POSSIBLY ALSO COVER OTHER TOPICS NOT COVERED IN THE WRITTEN TEST. IF THE STUDENT INTEGRATES THE EXAM ORALLY, THE OVERALL FINAL ASSESSMENT WILL STILL TAKE ACCOUNT OF BOTH THE WRITTEN TEST AND THE ORAL. IN THIS REGARD, GRAMMATICAL CORRECTNESS AND EXPOSITORY STYLE ARE WILL ALSO TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT WHEN EVALUATING THE WRITTEN TEXT.
THE WRITTEN TEST USUALLY CONSISTS OF THE FORMULATION OF 2 QUESTIONS EACH OF WHICH CONTAINS 3 SPECIFIC THEMES ON ONE OF THE TOPICS OF THE EXAM PROGRAM. THE TEST HAS A MAXIMUM DURATION OF 2 HOURS AND IS AIMED AT VERIFYING THE ABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THE TOPICS SUBJECT TO THE TEST AND THE ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE CORRECTLY IN WRITING.
THE ORAL TEST CONSISTS OF A 25-MINUTE DISCUSSION AIMED AT ASSESSING THE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE, THE CAPACITY OF ELABORATION OF THE ISSUES COVERED IN THE WRITTEN PART AND ABOUT THOSE ENVISAGED IN THE REST OF THE PROGRAM. THE ORAL TEST WILL ALSO ENABLE THE STUDENT TO USE THE LANGUAGE SKILLS AND TO ORGANIZER A AUTONOMOUS EXPOSURE ON THE AIMS OF THE DISCIPLINE WITH REFERENCES TO THEORETICAL AND APPLIED CONTENT AS WELL AS TO EVALUATE THE ABILITY TO PROCESS CRITICAL ANALYSES IN AN AUTONOMOUS FORM WITH RESPECT TO THEORETICAL ISSUES AND OF OTHER NATURE MET DURING THE COURSE.
Texts
VERA ZAMAGNI, FORME DI IMPRESA. UNA PROSPETTIVA STORICO-ECONOMICA, IL MULINO, BOLOGNA, 2020.

MIMMO CARRIERI, FABRIZIO PIRRO, INTRODUZIONE ALLE RELAZIONI INDUSTRIALI. CARATTERI E CONTESTI, 1ª EDIZIONE, EGEA, MILANO, 2024.
More Information
FOR THE STUDENT WHO INTENDS BY HIS FREE CHOICE TO DEEPEN ONE OR MORE TEACHING TOPICS, THEREFORE FOR HIS KNOWLEDGE AND NOT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE EXAM, THE FOLLOWING TEXTS ARE NOTED:

ANTONIO MUTTI, SOCIOLOGIA ECONOMICA. IL LAVORO FUORI E DENTRO L’IMPRESA, IL MULINO, BOLOGNA 2002.

FILIPPO BAREBERA E IVANA PAIS, A CURA DI, FONDAMENTI DI SOCIOLOGIA ECONOMICA, EGEA, MILANO 2017, IN PART. SEZIONE F, FORME DELLA RAPPRESENTANZA (PP. 429-471)

MIMMO CARRIERI E PAOLO FELTRIN, AL BIVIO. LAVORO, SINDACATO E RAPPRESENTANZA NELL’ITALIA D’OGGI, DONZELLI, ROMA 2016.

PAOLO FELTRIN E STEFANO ZAN, IMPRESE E RAPPRESENTANZA. RUOLO E FUNZIONI DELLE ASSOCIAZIONI IMPRENDITORIALI, CAROCCI, ROMA, 2014.

PAOLA DE VIVO, L’IMPRESA COME ISTITUZIONE SOCIALE, IL MULINO, BOLOGNA 2017.

RICHARD SWEDBERG, SOCIOLOGIA ECONOMICA, IN PART. CAP. 4 L’IMPRESA, PP. 74-104, EGEA, MILANO 2005.

LORENZO BORDOGNA, ROBERTO PEDERSINI, RELAZIONI INDUSTRIALI. L’ESPERIENZA ITALIANA NEL CONTESTO INTERNAZIONALE, IL MULINO, BOLOGNA 2019.
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