Independence From Management A Study of Advanced Teamwork

This article examines a case of advanced teamwork in a Canadian aluminum smelter. It demon-strates a pattern of high commitment at work and acceptance of change combined with a robust independence ofworkers frommanagement. Control is no longer exerted at the level ofwork exe-cution but is moved a step higher in the conception and monitoring of production, thus opening the way for workers’self-regulation. The explanation for this pattern lies in workers’tradition of group solidarity, which was expressed through a strong role for the trade union. Comparison with other cases underlies the centrality of worker collective organization if teamwork is to meet workers ’ as well as managers ’ expectations