Lecture 2.2. Social stratification

Of the British population.

Plan

1. Social classes of the British society.

2. Implications of belonging to a social class.

1. Britain has a deeply individualistic society. Nevertheless, it is also described as having a class-ridden one. Is it really true? The answer is not simple. Undoubtedly Britain is a class-conscious society. Not only the Royal Family, but also the surviving titled families and old land-owning families are treated with greater deference than might be expected in a democracy. There can be no doubt that they enjoy special status.

But such people are a very small minority of the population. Most people are classified according to their work occupations, falling into two broad groups, as in other industrialized societies, the middle class (or white-collar workers) and the working class (or blue-collar workers). The kind of work done not only indicates education and how much is earned, but also the kind of social contact that is usual. Most people generally mix socially with the same kind of people as those with whom they work. Manual workers tend to mix with each other, as do professionals (doctors, lawyers and senior civil servants) and managers.

Many people move from one category to another or increase their level of responsibility during their working lives. More importantly, the working class is rapidly declining. In 1911 three out of every four employed or self-employed people were manual workers. By 1950 that proportion had fallen to two out of three, but since then has fallen to only one in three. Since the 1950s there has been a massive growth of the middle class.

The middle class embraces a range of people from senior professionals, for example, judges, senior medical specialists and senior civil servants, through to clerical workers – in other words, almost all people who earn their living in a non-manual way. To this extent, the middle class embodies much variety and cannot claim a single identity. The sense of social class or group is affected by social circle, education and comparative wealth, although these do not necessarily work together.

Most British people are familiar with this account of the society. If you ask them, these are the terms they will use. But if you continue asking questions, you will find people are quickly dissatisfied with this account. There are many new kinds of work and new relationships between jobs; and then there are new methods of organizing and controlling employment. There is a more up-to-date classification which was devised in the early nineteen-seventies, by two British sociologists. May be it is not quite `correct` or `official` but it is useful and is used by many sociologists. There are seven basic classes:

· CLASS 1 includes large property owners, managers in large establishments, higher-grade administrators in government and large enterprises; and higher-grade professionals such as lawyers, most doctors, university lecturers, senior architects, etc.

· CLASS 2 includes lower-grade administrators and officials, managers in small businesses and industrial establishments; lower-grade professionals (school teachers, junior doctors, journalists, social workers) and higher-grade technicians.

These two classes represent the `service` class of modern capitalist society. They are essentially the large-scale employers, the bureaucracy and professionals who together exercise power and expertise on behalf of the major ruling bodies of the society. These people have high incomes (higher in Class 1), job security and the expectation of incomes likely to rise steadily over their lifetimes. The jobs either involve significant exercise of authority, or considerable freedom to choose how to do the work.

· CLASS 3 includes clerks and other office workers, salesmen, people who work in shops and in similar services.

· CLASS 4 includes small businessmen including farmers, self-employed skilled workers (plumbers, carpenters, decorators, etc. working for themselves), and those in similar occupations who employ a few workers.

· CLASS 5 includes the supervisors of manual labour, and lower-grade technicians; people who have some degree of authority (more, say, than many of those in Class 3) but who are unlikely to make the jump from `manual` responsibilities to management responsibilities.

Classes 3, 4 and 5 are grouped together as `intermediate` between the `service class` and the `working class`.

· CLASS 6 includes skilled manual workers in all branches of industry including those who have had some training before starting work, and those who have acquired special skills during the course of their work.

· CLASS 7 includes unskilled and semi-skilled workers in all branches of industry, and agricultural workers.

Classes 6 and 7 together comprise the working class and although those in Class 6 tend to get higher wages, both groups sell their labour power specifically for wages, and both groups are placed in an entirely subordinate position and subject to the authority of the employer or his managers.

2. What are the implications of belonging to one of these classes? What are they saying about British citizens? First of all, there is a wide disparity of incomes. This is more than simple payment for work: some jobs have pensions. Some jobs have allowances for housing, travel and other expenses. People in such jobs, which are typically in Class 1 and sometimes in Class 2, end up with much more money than those in Classes 6 and 7 who are paid simple wages. A wage is normally paid weekly, for labour. A salary is normally paid monthly, and is perhaps considered rather differently – as payment for a whole job involving complicated commitments on both sides. In higher-paid jobs, people tend to get more and more money as they get older and more experienced. Even without `promotion` university teachers will continue to have an annual increase in their salaries until they are in their early forties. Wage earners – the working classes – cannot expect to improve their wages much, if at all.

Then there are conditions of work. Again, these are most pleasant in Class 1 and Class 2, not surprisingly, since these are the people who make decisions about what the work conditions will be. In the other classes, it is much less clear-cut. Many people feel that routine clerical and sales work (Class 3) has extremely depressing conditions – long hours, overcrowded offices or shops, little comfort and dull work. Skilled workers in some industries may have better conditions – but they may have a lot worse. As for the self-employed and the small employers in Class 4, conditions for them may be terrible, but as a class, they are usually working in that particular job because they want to do so; and in general they will have a lot more freedom of action than most.

Authority over others is another attraction in a job. Most people in Class 1 and many people in Classes 2 and 5 have authority over other employees. But those in Class 2 and Class 5 are also themselves subordinate to those further up the hierarchy. So they will always be looking over their shoulders, keeping an eye out for the boss! In general, responsibility is a very important part of the evaluation of a job – and taking responsibility is likely to increase income, status and opportunities for promotion.

Then there is job security. Very few jobs in Britain are totally secure. Employees, whether in a private company or working for the state can almost always be `sacked` (the popular word for being sent out of job).

All these conditions define the place in the society.