Using data from extensive on-site interviews conducted in 1997, 1998, and 1
999, the authors examine trends in job content and earnings in selected job
s in two American banks. Firm restructuring and technological changes resul
ted in higher earnings for college-educated workers. The banks followed dif
ferent strategies in implementing these changes for lower-skill jobs, with
different effects on bank tellers in particular. The authors conclude that
technological change can provide opportunities for workplace reform but doe
s not determine its effects on jobs and earnings; these effects are conting
ent on managerial strategies. This focus on organizational processes and ma
nagerial strategy provides a complement to accounts of growing inequality t
hat center solely on the role of individual skills and technological change
.