Completed PhD project
Project of the Postgraduate Research Group of the Hans Böckler Foundation
Social Consequences of the Transformation of the World of Work
The socialist working society eroded within a short space of time during the transition from 'plan' to 'market'. The project built on the premise that the economic transformation did not solely mark the end of the socialist labor society. Concurrent with the reduction of the workforce and the loss of social safety nets, marketisation shaped a new world of work that followed the principle of the market. This dynamic gripped the retail sector early on and at a rapid pace, a sector which had previously been unable to meet the consumer needs of the population. West German companies, which in some cases took over former HO shops and in others established new markets, quickly dominated retail in East Germany. The consumer co-operatives, which as co-operatives had not been part of the Volkseigentum, entered the new economic order as legally independent enterprises.
This study examined how market logic transformed the work of shop assistants in consumer co-operatives—known colloquially as ‘Konsum’—and the social consequences that ensued. To this end, the project tracked the changing working world of retail staff at the meso and micro levels, with a particular focus on the consumer co-operatives in Chemnitz and Leipzig. The situation of shop assistants in the ‘Konsum’ at the end of the GDR formed the starting point for examining the marketisation processes after 1989/90, which extended into the mid-1990s.
The project argued that the new economic logic was inscribed into the working world gradually rather than abruptly and comprehensively. The consumer co-operatives combined new capitalist and old socialist practices, both of which aimed at higher labour productivity. Beyond new disparities caused by the transformation, unequal social situations persisted that had already shaped working conditions at ‘Konsum’ prior to 1989/90. In light of the long lines of social inequality, the new labour regime is explained not solely by these disparities, but substantially by the hitherto unknown social insecurity entailed by market logic. Marketisation brought about not only social disruptions for the shop assistants, but also a improving working conditions.
