WORKING CONDITIONS ‘DETERMINANTS’: THE ROLE OF INNOVATIONS AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS. EVIDENCE FOR A LOCAL PRODUCTION SYSTEM

Not to be quoted Changes in organization of work and production certainly impact on the workers well being. Whether such an influence is positive or negative is an empirical matter, upon which the present work tries to shed light for a local production system located in Northern Italy. During the 1990s several economists and managerial scholars pointed to the positive effects on workers from the introduction of new forms of work and production organization; however, some more recent studies highlight its potential negative effects. In addition to the organizational innovations it is important not to overlooking other aspects of firms ’ innovation activity and industrial relations that may influence the working conditions. Cooperative relationships at firm level between union delegates and management are likely to be linked with good quality working conditions. Our empirical aim is twofold. First, we disentangle the role of innovation intensity in four different innovation areas (technology, organization, training and ICT), on working conditions. The evidence is mixed. On the one hand, innovations have an overall positive effect on working conditions. However, this effect is weak and for specific organizational aspects, is negative. Second, we confirm the relationship between cooperative industrial relations, at firm level, and working conditions