ABSTRACT
"Flexibility" has become a buzzword used by economists to describe virtually any feature of the modern corporation that deviates from the rigidity of the mass manufacturing system prevalent before the 1980s. Managers also individually stagger employees' shifts to enforce flexible work time. Workers may even be asked not to start their scheduled shifts if the restaurant appears slow, or called at home to come in when not originally scheduled if the restaurant becomes unexpectedly busy. The corporate giants create the all-around worker by maintaining a distinction between the technical division of labor (stations and jobs) and the social division of labor (employees' roles) to enhance productivity and reduce labor costs. Employees usually begin and end their shifts as individuals rather than as a group to help manage the precise amount of labor required at any given time.
