ABSTRACT
This chapter looks theoretically at some of the themes raised so far; class, subjectivity and a working-class habitus. It also focuses on the way employees withdraw from the call centre and whether it is actually possible to leave the post-industrial assembly line behind and move up the labour market and social ladder. The chapter argues that a certain semblance of working-class culture still exists, the overt political consciousness of the traditional working class failed to survive the social upheaval of the last quarter of the twentieth century. Fenton and Dermott's analysis of the labour market, particularly for young people who make regular sideways moves rather than moving up the job ladder. To take one facet of the traditional working-class habitus, a concern with and struggle towards collective betterment emanated from a sense of obligation and togetherness stemming from community and industry.
