Is happiness at work a class privilege? Subjective relationships to work and class boundaries in Europe

Pénissat Etienne (1) , Alexis Spire (2) , Cecile Rodrigues (3, 4)

1 CMH - Centre Maurice Halbwachs
2 IRIS - Institut de Recherche Interdisciplinaire sur les enjeux Sociaux - sciences sociales, politique, santé
3 CERAPS - Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches Administratives, Politiques et Sociales - UMR 8026
4 Acadiscri

In this chapter based on the EWCS 2015 survey, we propose to establish a relationship of homology between the objective membership to social classes and subjective representations linked to work. Our aim is to understand the symbolic representation that workers make of their place at work, their working conditions, and the possibilities—or not—for them to modify their situation. The differences observed in working conditions invite us to reconsider the characteristics generally attributed to national determinisms. Our approach allows us to show that not only class boundaries but also national and regional boundaries are linked to the transformations of European capitalism.

Keywords: Europe; Social Space; Job quality; Working conditions; Happiness at work

Domains: Sociology

Pénissat Etienne, Alexis Spire, Cecile Rodrigues. Is happiness at work a class privilege? Subjective relationships to work and class boundaries in Europe. Cédric Hugrée; Étienne Penissat; Alexis Spire; Johs. Hjellbrekke. Class Boundaries in Europe: The Bourdieusian Approach in Perspective., Routledge, pp.257-273, 2022, 9781032122670. ⟨10.4324/9781003223863-19⟩. ⟨halshs-03919056⟩