Computer-aided Manufacturing and Women's Employment: The Clothing Industry in Four EC Countries

Drawing on the experiences of four major EC countries, this book documents the way computer technology has changed the pattern of women's work in the manufacturing sector. The sixteen contributors are leading authorities on the subject and analyse how technology has transformed employment in the clothing industry, which is still the major employer of female blue-collar workers in the EC. The contributors assess the aspects of computerisation that particularly affect women's employment opportuni- ties: flexible hours, flexible work locations and flexible specialisation. The book also contains evaluations of post-Fordism and human-centred technology, two leading issues in the debate about the applications of artificial intelligence and computer-aided technology. These essays highlight a growing polarisation in the job market and suggest training schemes which can equip women for technical and managerial employment. This is a pioneering work; so far, most of the literature on women and computerisation has focussed on office automation and data processing. Computer-aided Manufacturing and Women's Employment makes an important contribution to the fields of technology, employment, women's work, business management and trade union studies.