| This thesis explores monitoring, control and resistance in the call centre labour process, related to the intensive use of surveillance technologies in these workplaces. Focus is placed on call centres as an emergent feature of an increasingly global economy, driven by corporate restructuring, the internationalization of investment and production processes and advancements in information and communication technologies. This thesis assesses the degree to which employees shape and resist the use of surveillance technologies within the call centre. It examines the underlying social relations behind computer-based performance monitoring in call centres, including how these technologies are shaped by manager-worker relations, employee use of the technology, and the presence and degree to which these monitoring technologies are resisted. Unlike early literature on call centres, which stressed the invasive nature of surveillance technologies and their potential for control over workers, this thesis outlines the growing body of academic research that examines the embeddedness of surveillance technology in the social relations at work in the call centre. The emphasis in this work is on worker responses and resistance to workplace surveillance in the call centre, as well as with management and organizational concerns.; This thesis presents the research results of qualitative semi-structured interviews, which are used to gauge worker experiences in call centres in Ontario, expanding the limited Canadian data in this area. While the thematic findings of these interviews are not meant to be exhaustive or representative, they illustrate individual employee perspectives and feelings on the workplace organization and the extent of surveillance technology use within the call centre. The interviews highlight both acts of resistance and their influence on the workplace setting, as well as the difficulties of mobilizing collective resistance in these call centres. This thesis suggests that further research is needed regarding the outsourcing of call centre business contracts, worker resistance and the potential for union organization in call centres. |
