GENDER, ETHNICITY AND TECHNOLOGICAL-CHANGE

This article explores the work experiences of women and men. all immig rants, at one of Volvo's largest car assembly plants. It poses questio ns about what happens to them in the process of technological change a nd how they interpret their situation. Starting with a critical assess ment of theories on the new organization of work from a gender and eth nic perspective, the study analyses the effects of gendered and ethnic ized thinking in the work process. By comparing the work experiences o f Finnish and Yugoslav women and men with regard to work situation, in ternal skill and career development in the context of technological ch ange, a gendered and ethnic pattern emerges. The results indicate that gendered values exclude women immigrants from opportunities inherent in technological change, irrespective of their particular ethnic origi n. Immigrant men, on the other hand, are selectively affected by obsta cles to career development, by different sets of ethnic prejudice that have developed.