Work-to-rule

Work-to-rule

Work-to-rule is an industrial action in which employees do no more than the minimum required by the rules of a workplace, and follow safety or other regulations to the letter in order to cause a slowdown rather than to serve their purpose. This is considered less disruptive than a strike or lockout; and just obeying the rules is less susceptible to disciplinary action. Notable examples have included nurses refusing to answer telephones and high school teachers refusing to write recommendation letters for their students' college applications.

Sometimes the term "rule-book slowdown" is used in a slightly different sense than "work-to-rule": the former involves applying to the letter rules that are normally set aside or interpreted less literally to increase efficiency; the latter, refraining from activities which are customary but not required by rule or job description. But the terms may be used synonymously.

Sometimes work-to-rule can be considered malicious compliance by employers as they pursue legal action.

In some languages (e.g. Russian) it is known as "Italian strike", as it is believed that it was first utilized in Italy in the 1904. [ [http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%98%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%8F%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F_%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%B1%D0%B0%D1%81%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%BA%D0%B0 Italian strike] Russian wikipedia] In Italy, it is known as "sciopero bianco" or "white strike".

In popular culture

In the 2006 "Corner Gas" episode "Dog River Dave", the local police department works-to-rule, which ironically leads to them doing more work than they had been accustomed to.

References

* [http://www.psacbc.com/tools-for-members/members/strike-information/work-to-rule-what-does-it-mean/ Work To Rule: What Does It Mean?] strike information, Public Service Alliance of Canada BC, psacbc.com
* [http://www.tiscali.co.uk/reference/encyclopaedia/hutchinson/m0028627.html work to rule] encyclopedia, www.tiscali.co.uk
* [http://libcom.org/organise/work-to-rule Work-to-rule] organise, libcom.org


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • work-to-rule — ˌwork to ˈrule , ˌwork to ˈcontract noun [singular] HUMAN RESOURCES an occasion when people protest about a situation at work by doing their job less quickly or effectively, but without breaking their employer s rules or the terms of their… …   Financial and business terms

  • work product rule — n. A rule protecting work product from discovery. The Essential Law Dictionary. Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008. work product rule A legal doctrine that provides tha …   Law dictionary

  • work-to-rule — n [singular] a situation in which people in a particular job refuse to do any additional work as a protest →↑strike →work to rule at ↑work1 (32) …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • work–to–rule — n: the practice of working to the strictest interpretation of the rules as a job action Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • work-to-rule — noun singular a situation in which workers protest by doing only the exact work that their contract says they must do …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • work to rule — ► work to rule chiefly Brit. follow official working rules and hours exactly in order to reduce output and efficiency, as a form of industrial action. Main Entry: ↑work …   English terms dictionary

  • work to rule — Employees performing their duties strictly to the letter of their contract (that is, refusing to take on any additional duties), the aim being to slow down production or otherwise disrupt the employer s business. Practical Law Dictionary.… …   Law dictionary

  • work-to-rule — Employees performing their duties strictly to the letter of their contract (that is, refusing to take on any additional duties), the aim being to slow down production or otherwise disrupt the employer s business. Practical Law Dictionary.… …   Law dictionary

  • work to rule — noun a job action in which workers cause a slowdown by doing only the minimum amount required by the rules of the workplace • Hypernyms: ↑job action * * * work to rule (of workers) to observe all the regulations scrupulously for the express… …   Useful english dictionary

  • work-to-rule — ¦ ̷ ̷  ̷ ̷ ˈ ̷ ̷ noun chiefly Britain : the practice of working according to the strictest interpretation of the rules so as to slow down production and force employers to comply with demands • work to rule intransitive verb, chiefly Britain * *… …   Useful english dictionary

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