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How Can New Players Establish Themselves in Highly Institutionalized Labour Markets? A Belgian Case Study in the Area of Project†Based Work

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  • Virginie Xhauflair
  • Benjamin Huybrechts
  • François Pichault

Abstract

How can new players seeking to serve nonstandard worker categories (such as project†based workers) establish themselves into labour markets that are highly institutionalized? This paper explores the case of SMart, a Belgian community†based labour market intermediary that successfully developed solutions to better represent the interests of project†based workers and secure their discontinuous careers. Using an organizational legitimacy approach, we find that labour market entry and growth involve different types of boundary†crossing when addressing the needs of workers that do not fit into established categories. However, to justify boundary†crossing, the new player must complement its pragmatic work on delivering new services and tools with conceptual (cognitive) and structural (moral) legitimation work.

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  • Virginie Xhauflair & Benjamin Huybrechts & François Pichault, 2018. "How Can New Players Establish Themselves in Highly Institutionalized Labour Markets? A Belgian Case Study in the Area of Project†Based Work," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 56(2), pages 370-394, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:56:y:2018:i:2:p:370-394
    DOI: 10.1111/bjir.12281
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    3. Bas A. S. Koene & François Pichault, 2021. "Embedded Fixers, Pragmatic Experimenters, Dedicated Activists: Evaluating Third‐Party Labour Market Actors’ Initiatives for Skilled Project‐Based Workers in the Gig Economy," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 59(2), pages 444-473, June.
    4. Julien Charles & Isabelle Ferreras & Auriane Lamine, 2020. "A freelancers’ cooperative as a case of democratic institutional experimentation for better work: a case study of SMart-Belgium," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 26(2), pages 157-174, May.

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