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In this chapter, sharing economy, also called the gig economy, is discussed as part of the digital economy. This research analyzes the main difficulties of gig workers, and their needs will be analyzed as one of the crucial issues. This research also seeks to examine the government's role in prior economies and the sharing economy of today. In addition, existing legislation and procedures for gig workers will be compared across nations. Furthermore, some of the most important initiatives to engage with the sharing economy are also investigated. Methods such as “word frequency query” and “exploration diagrams,” which are supported by NVivo qualitative research software, are utilized in order to accomplish this research. In this study, the interview method occurs with an expert that is considered in order to observe both the government's stance on the sharing economy and its practical effects. The research discloses that government engagement in the sharing economy is inevitable, and the adoption of existing policies is challenging.

The question of the nature of the collar is pursued drawing on results generated in the field of social ontology as well as on observations from history. In this chapter, it can be tried to seek what the nature of collar is, this is a central question for social theory, not least economics and human resources. Tony Lawson (2019, p. 1, 2021) has recently developed a theory of social positioning “… which is the social phenomena are everywhere constituted by or within process through which social totalities are formed or emerge.” The central idea of the theory of social positioning is that social relations are ultimately power relationships, which structure how social phenomena are organized. This chapter further explores this idea by conceptualizing power drawing on the theory of social positioning. Collar is a social phenomenon and associated with certain kind of structure which is social classes in this chapter. This structure will be taken as a class relation in Marxist approach as it is known, this relation is about power. In this framework, the question of the nature of collar needs to be explained with social positioning theory.

The main purpose of the study is to examine the intellectual structure of academic studies on blue-collar workers. In this context, (1) productivity and evolution of the field, (2) conceptual dimensions, (3) citation density and (4) structure of academic networks related to blue-collar workers were analyzed. The findings of the study produced results covering all fields of science, not just management and organization. As a result of the study, blue-collar studies by years, the most cited blue-collar studies, the researchers who published the most frequently about blue-collar workers, the researchers who conducted the longest research on blue-collar workers, the most frequently used keywords and academic networks in blue-collar studies are determined. The most important finding is that the blue-collar issue is the common intersection point of different fields of science such as health, medicine, finance, management and organization, marketing, psychology and sociology.

Relying on Social Identity Theory (SIT), Relative Deprivation Theory (RDT) and System Justification Theory (SJT), this study aims at examining identity enhancement strategies of blue-collar workers who might be described as members of low-status groups having negative social identity. In the scope of this study, individual and collective strategies for identity enhancement of blue-collar workers have been proposed with the support of above mentioned theories. First of all, factors determining identity enhancement strategies have been described. Then, individual mobility conditions were explained and informal workplace learning was suggested as an individual mobility strategy for blue-collar workers to enhance social identity. In addition, it was argued that high self-monitoring blue collars are more likely than low self-monitoring blue collars to use individual mobility strategy. It was also emphasized that through union membership, high identifier blue collars will adopt a collective identity enhancement strategy. Finally, acceptance of low-status strategy was proposed for blue-collar workers in case they perceive their group’s low status as stable and legitimate.

Psychosocial risks in the workplace include occupational risks such as stress, harassment, burnout, and workplace violence that affect the physical integrity and mental health of employees (Bunker et al., 2003). Work-related psychosocial risks are relevant to the design and management of the job and its social and organizational contexts (Leka, Griffiths, & Cox, 2003). In this study, it was investigated which factors are effective in the psychosocial risk assessments of blue-collar workers in Turkey and whether there is a significant effect of gender in these assessments. The sample of the research consists of 663 employees working in a production facility in Tekirdag. The results showed that cognitive demands, the meaning of work, and development opportunity variables differed by gender from psychosocial risks. Women evaluate lower scores than men in expressions related to cognitive demands, the meaning of work, and development opportunities. Quantitative demands, emotional demands, burnout, and job satisfaction did not differ significantly by gender. The findings provide an understanding of the potential risks in the working conditions of blue workers in Turkey and provide the basis for future research.

Some fuzzy definitions such as gray collar workers (GCW) needs to be constructed by academic research in management and organization field. The authors propose a framework for researchers who are interested in studying gray collar workforce after the fourth industrial revolution (I4.0) with network perspectives and methods. Hence, understanding different classes of workforce in the new industrial era needs better understandings of fuzzy concepts and well collected data for decision-making processes. Since literature of management studies are not sufficient to identify and study those new classes, the authors begin with the definition of collar colors in management studies. Following that section, referring to the importance of GCW research, a new literature construction via different types of network analyses is discussed. Three different methods of network concepts are matched with three main social science paradigms. The authors believe that the three perspectives are in the same importance about constructing a literature of future workforce in organizations in particular the GCW who are more exposed in technological developments and organizational changes.

Understanding disabled people as gray-collar workers who are under-paid, under-valued and under-employed is recognized as in urgent need of attention but remains unaddressed. Based on 30 semi-structured interviews with disabled people, observations and document analysis, the authors argue that the disabled gray-collar workers in the performing arts provide a context and socio-cultural perspective on how gray-collar workers can attain dignity through social inclusion. Building on a novel framework of four dimensions of social inclusion theory – access, participation, representation and empowerment – the authors identify social interactions portrayed in the performing arts in order to deconstruct the processes that normalize and reinforce exclusion and inequality. The authors demonstrate how social inclusion can be “enabled” which has implications for theory, policy and practice.

Residents in under-resourced/high-Medicaid (85% or higher) nursing homes on average receive care from relatively lower quality providers and have worse health outcomes, which may increase the risk of higher COVID-19 incidence. This study aims to evaluate if having a culture that encourages employee empowerment results in better quality (lower COVID-19 deaths) in times of crisis, such as the current pandemic. The study combined primary survey data from 391 Directors of Nursing (response rate of 37%), with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Nursing Home COVID-19 Public File, LTCFocus, Area Health Resource File, and Nursing Home Compare. The dependent variable consisted of the number of COVID-19 death as of November 25, 2021. The independent variables consisted of Likert scale for employee empowerment (Cronbach alpha= 0.82). Control variables consisted of organizational factors (e.g., size, location, and ownership), as well as community factors (e.g., poverty, unemployment, and competition). The results indicated that one unit increase in employee empowerment was associated with 6% lower likelihood of having COVID-19 deaths. Nursing homes, particularly those under-resourced, face difficulty improving the quality of care due to financial constraints. However, the results suggest that adopting a culture that fosters employee empowerment may give nursing homes an edge in improving quality outcomes in crises.