New research reveals how union leaders navigate power relations under algorithmic management

School of Human Resources and Labor Relations assistant professor Hye Jin Rho is a co-author of a new study that examines how union leaders navigate shifting power dynamics under algorithmic management in the hotel housekeeping industry. The article, "Building Power From the Bottom-Up: How Union Leaders Navigate Power Relations Under Algorithmic Management," appears in the British Journal of Industrial Relations.

In collaboration with Christine A. Riordan, Yeaseul Hur, Patricia Tabarani, and Deborah M. Figart, Dr. Rho identifies three interconnected strategies that union leaders use to support workers as technology reshapes workplace rules and interactions: collective sensemaking through skill-building and shared coordination, consultation and negotiation with management, and adaptive forms of collective action. The study highlights how unions are developing new approaches to protect workers' interests in increasingly tech-driven workplaces.