SIOP 2020 Acknowledges Project GLOW’s Contributions on Living Wages and Workplace Well-Being

Posted on September 2, 2020

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt on behalf of Dr. Isbhel McWha-Hermann, Prof. Rosaline Searle, Dr. Mahima Saxena, Dr. Bimal Arora, Dr. Divya Jyoti.

As with most events in 2020, SIOP 2020 was a little different this year. The umbrella organization of industrial-organizational psychologists hosted its annual conference virtually this year, in order to support the spread of science without COVID-19. While our efforts to end poverty and world hunger at Project GLOW have always been imperative, the modern pandemic has shed painfully harsh light on these inequalities. Thus, Project GLOW’s panel session “Siop Select: Living Wage, Workplace Well-Being: Contributions From Project GLOW”, was even more relevant than ever. CONTINUE READING

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The Subjective Experience of Work-Related Precariousness: Why it Matters

Posted on February 17, 2020

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt on behalf of Dr. Christian Seubert and Dr. Lisa Hopfgartner

With the dawn of information and communication technologies (ICT) came a plethora of never-before-seen phenomena: Mobile Internet, Lyft, selfies, dating apps, and – worst of all – an unnecessary number of blogs.

ICT has also drastically changed the world of work, shifting “normal” employment to “atypical”. CONTINUE READING

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Can a Living Wage Improve Production?

Posted on December 1, 2019

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt

Some international clothing brands such as H&MContinental Clothing and Mini Rodini have committed to paying workers a living wage. While the companies plan to expand their mission, critics argue that there are many barriers preventing organizations from implementing livable wages for supplier factories’ employees in developing countries. These obstacles include increasing the cost of products for customers, decreasing rates of employment, and increasing the replacement of workers with automation.

This dilemma is especially salient in the Indian garment export sector, where inequalities are so drastic that some workers have reported a month’s wages could not purchase a garment they created. Even so, the garment factor has proven vital to India’s economic growth. While research on living wages has grown in the United Kingdom, United States, and New Zealand, developing countries are drastically under researched. GLOW researcher Dr. Bimal Arora has proposed a study to examine the perspectives on living wages and the capabilities for them in this sector.  CONTINUE READING

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How to Raise Wages Without Increasing Unemployment

Posted on December 1, 2019

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt

The opposition to increase wages to be “livable” is actually not always heartless. While it may be shocking that some disagree that paying people well enough to afford basic needs (such as healthcare), a major concern that many opposers have is that increasing wages will make employees so unaffordable that they will actually lose their jobs.

When employers have to pay their employees more, they are concerned they will lose profit. This perception has had a devastating impact on low-wage workers; for example, when Wendy’s increased their minimum wage, they also eliminated 31 hours of labor per location every week.

Fortunately, GLOW researcher Dr. Molefe Maleka discovered there is a benefit to employers for retaining employees who are paid a livable wage.  CONTINUE READING

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How to Engage Informal Workers in Work Restructuring Programs

Posted on November 27, 2019

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt

If you remember from our first post, Project GLOW has partnered with the United Nations to use organizational science to address the Sustainable Development Goals…but what has the GLOW community contributed since then? GLOW researcher Dr. Charles Tchagneno’s recent dissertation research contributes to these goals by  investigating how people in developing countries decide to engage in programs that will help them leave low-wage jobs.  CONTINUE READING

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How to Justify Higher Wages

Posted on November 27, 2019

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt

Can the interests of laborers and management align on the same minimum wage?

Recent work by GLOW Researchers Mendiola Teng-Calleja, Donald Jay Bertulfo, Jose Antonio R. Clemente, and Ma. Ligaya M. Menguito in the Philippines are supporting national movements  to shift from “minimum wages to “living wages.” In the Philippines, 26.3% of people live in poverty. Additionally, workers’ groups are emphasizing that minimum wage is not allowing them to utilize their capabilities or live a quality life. However, Silvestre Bello III, the Secretary of the Philippines’ Department of Labor and Employment, has expressed that higher wages can only be justified if they balance the interests of labor and management.  CONTINUE READING

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How to Fight Poverty with Organizational Science

Posted on July 19, 2019

Authored by Anna Kallschmidt

Poverty is such a pervasive global issue that research by the PEW Research Center found that 71% of the globe lived on under $10 a day in 2011. With such a overwhelming percentage, it can be difficult to know where to even begin in fighting it. However, if you’re an organizational scientist, the United Nations and Project GLOW have a list of objectives for eradicating poverty around the world.

Project GLOW (Global Living Organisational Wage), is a global network of researchers initiated by Dr. Stuart Carr at Massey University in New Zealand. GLOW researchers aim to answer the question, is there a global living wage that permits people, communities, and organizations to thrive?  CONTINUE READING

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