In high school history class, the late 1800s to the early 1900s was my least favorite time period—although I remember that it was characterized by great tension between workers and employers. However, I have come to appreciate the time period a little more after this week’s readings emphasized its importance in the history and evolution of work and power relations among capitalists, managers and the workers. Because much of the evolution of control in the workplace came from Edwards, I found myself wondering how control in core firms has continued to evolve over the past 35 years since he wrote the book. There were three different issues that I kept referring back to throughout the readings. First, Edwards notes how bureaucratic control
