Dignity in the Workplace. The Perspective of Humanistic Management

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this article is to fll the gap in the Polish discourse on management about the concept of dignity in the workplace. The text presents the issue from the perspective of humanistic management. The article analyzes contemporary discussion about dignity in the workplace conducted in the Western discourse on management.

Methodology: The reflections stem from a critical analysis of popular concepts of dignity in the workplace in the management discourse. The author also uses the existing results of empirical research. The analysis uses management literature on dignity, which is the basis for systematizing available concepts.

Findings: The literature analysis enables systematization of various concepts of dignity in the workplace and identifcation of specifc levels in the quality of employee treatment in an organization. Hence, the author identifes a few key factors that affect employees’ dignity in the workplace both positively and negatively and indicates mechanisms that allow for the humanization of work processes.

Research limitations: The theoretical reflections should be verifed by empirical research in organizations. However, the area of research on dignity in the workplace is not problematized enough, potential problems still require in-depth theoretical research.

Practical implications: The reflection on dignity in the workplace emphasizes the organizational mechanisms that lead to the humanization and dehumanization of work processes. The problematization of the category of dignity should allow researchers to conduct empirical research in organizations and managers to design organizational solutions that protect the well-being of their employees which, in consequence, may have a positive impact on the organization’s development.

Originality: The article discusses the concepts of dignity in the workplace which are absent in the Polish discourse of management and indicates directions of further research in the feld.