Franco Bonomi Bezzo
Research project
The evolution of attitudes towards paid work in contemporary deindustrialising societies across Global North and Global South
Project abstract
Historically, work has been a fundamental aspect of societal structures, providing not only economic sustenance but also conferring social status and identity. However, the changing landscape of work, characterised by increasing deindustrialization, gig-based employment, and automation, challenges the traditional notion of work as a stable source of financial security and social inclusion. Despite these shifts, societal norms and cultural beliefs often continue to emphasise the importance of work for one’s status and inclusion within the community. This could be rooted in deeply ingrained perceptions of worthiness tied to economic productivity as the main contribution to society.
Such beliefs create a paradox where the value and privilege attributed to work persist, even as the tangible benefits and security it offers decline. This paradox calls for a revaluation of societal attitudes towards work and a reimagining of social inclusion approach beyond traditional employment structures. The aim of this project is to RE-assess the significance of paid employment in modern societies, spanning both the Global North and Global South, while investigating the impact of social policies in a scenario where the centrality of paid work could diminish.
This project will first explore how perceptions of paid work are evolving in contemporary societies around the world. Second, the project will delve into an in-depth analysis of six distinct policy trials conducted in four diverse contexts: the United Kingdom, France, Austria, and South Africa. By closely examining these real-world trials, the research aims to understand the dynamics of how such policies influence individuals’ and communities’ attitudes towards paid work. Lastly, building upon the insights gained from these specific case studies, the project will develop a complexity theory of work, to offer a novel perspectives and comprehensive insights into the interplay between work, society, and individuals.
Biography
Franco Bonomi Bezzo is a research fellow at La Statale, University of Milan, within the ERC project DESPO, working on the political and societal changes that have occurred as a consequence of European deindustrialisation. From January 2020 to March 2021, he was based at the Institut national d’études démographiques (INED) in Paris where he remained affiliated to Unit 6: Housing, spatial inequalities and trajectories. He is also a Research Affiliate at the Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit (SALDRU) at the University of Cape Town where he spent a five month visiting in 2023..
His research focuses on the analysis of socio-cultural determinants of inequality at the meso-level. He is interested in analyzing how the physical and cultural context in which individuals are embedded in shape their opportunities across the life-course. He has investigated this theme by looking specifically at neighborhoods, communities, and cultural norms as meso-level determinants of inequality. More specifically, his current research agenda focuses on understanding how different experiences of scarcity at the meso-level, affect individuals social cohesion and civic engagement, on investigating the relationship between infrastructural inequality and social cohesion in central and southern Africa, and on the centrality of paid work in contemporary societies across the world.
