Re-working Work: Dependency and Choice in the Employment Relationship

ABSTRACT

The Work Choices reform package was justified by the Coalition government as allowing greater ‘freedom’ and ‘choice’ for employees and employers. Such a narrative of employment is grounded in a particular neo-liberal view of the labour market that fails to recognise power in the employment relationship. An alternative narrative of employment relations is articulated in this article that draws on the notions of dependence and compulsion. Neo-liberalism has drawn an important sense of legitimacy from neoclassical economics. The neoclassical approach views work as an activity that is isolated from other social activities and roles played by workers. This isolation of work is important for sustaining the image of choice in the labour market.