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With apologies for self-promotion and cross-listing… We would like to
bring to your attention a publication that might be of interest:

Sub-theme 53: Power and difference in organizations: Turning to
ancient Greek philosophy, drama and mythology in search of new meanings

31st EGOS Colloquium, 2-4 July, Athens, Greece

Deadline for submission of short papers: Monday, January 12, 2015

Convenors:
Marianna Fotaki, Warwick Business School & Manchester Business School, UK
Marianna.Fotaki@wbs.ac.uk
Nancy Harding, Bradford University School of Management, UK
n.h.harding@bradford.ac.uk
Olivia Kyriakidou, Athens University of Economics and Business, Greece
okyriakidou@aueb.gr

Ancient Greek philosophy, drama and mythology have been fertile
sources of inspiration for philosophy, critical social theory,
psychoanalysis and feminist thinking. Indeed, Steiner (1984) argues
that the problems that bedevil Western culture originate in the entry
of Ancient Greek drama and mythology into the syntax and semantics of
European languages and thus condition what it is possible to think,
speak and write. Management and organization theory has indirectly or
implicitly drawn upon these resources – the language we use and the
philosophers who inspire us draw upon them (McCarthy, 2003), but there
has been little explicit engagement. This sub-theme invites engagement
with classic myths, stories and ideas so as to explore ways of
re-articulating and re-thinking subjectivity, the self, difference and
the politics of difference in organizations and society.
The Call intends specifically to disrupt, subvert and play with the
inherited and taken for granted ideas of femininity, hierarchy,
organization, body and otherness by tracing the influence of Greek
Antiquity upon organizational thought. The aim is to re-position,
re-ject, re-write and re-inscribe contemporary identities. Its
inspiration is Cixous’ (1976) use of Medusa to redefine symbols of
femininity (Cixous, 1976) and Butler’s (2000) reading of Antigone to
rethink kinship relations (Butler, 2000) (but see also Mitchell
[2000], and Zajko and Leonard, 2008]). We invite theoretical and
empirical contributions, broadly construed, concerning bodies
(sexuality, gender, dis-ability, age), social class, ethnicity or the
experience of dispossession (slavery, homelessness, unemployment,
statelessness and migration). The suggestions below are indicative and
not exhaustive;
- What new bodies of knowledge or new ways of speaking of and
within organizations become possible with new interpretations of the
philosophies, myths and dramas?
- How are contemporary notions of difference, including race,
gender and various forms of dispossession, informed by the male
imaginary of ancient Greek aesthetics and theoretical apparatus? How
can we use this knowledge to bring about social and organizational
change?
- What new ways of speaking that offer an avenue for
emancipatory practice emerge through re-reading the Ancient Greek
heritage?

References
Butler, J. Antigone’s claim. New York: Columbia University Press. 2000.
Cixous, H. ‘The laugh of the Medusa’. Trans. Cohen, K and Cohen, P.
Signs. 1976, 1, 4, 875-893.
McCarthy, G.E. Classical horizons. The origins of sociology in Ancient
Greece. Albany: State University of New York Press. 2003.
Mitchell, J. Mad men and medusas. London and New York. 2000.
Steiner, G. Antigones. Oxford: Oxford University Press 1984
Zajko, V. and Leonard, M. (Eds). (2008) Laughing with Medusa:
Classical myth and feminist thought. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

For further information:
http://www.egosnet.org/2015_athens/subthemes_call_for_short_papers

Dear Colleagues,

With apologies for self-promotion and cross-listing… We would like to
bring to your attention a EURAM 2016 track, entitled "Economic crisis
and austerity the risks on human and social rights at work" that might
be of interest (Strategic Interest Group: Business for Society):

Call for Papers

Economic Crisis and Austerity: The Risks on Human and Social Rights at Work

16th European Academy of Management Conference in Paris, France,
between 1 - 4 June, 2016

The deadline for the submission of papers is 12 January, 2016.

Track Convenors:
Joana Vassilopoulou, Kent Business School, UK (j.vassilopoulou@kent.ac.uk)
Olivia Kyriakidou, Athens University of Economics and Business,
Greece, okyriakidou@aueb.gr)
Andri Georgiadou (University of Herfordshire, UK,
andrigeorgiadou.ag@gmail.com)

The current global economic crisis has impacted countries around the
world in different ways. Some countries continue to experience higher
levels of economic growth, such as in the global south, while others
are on a slow path of recovery, or as in the extreme case of Greece in
a seemingly hopeless situation. There is also great disparity in how
governments responded to the crisis in terms of policy and
implementation. The USA and a number of European governments have
decided to impose various austerity measures on their populations, as
a response to the crisis. This has led to significant uncertainty, due
to an increasingly precarious mode of living and working for many in
the world. Neoliberal austerity measures have been legitimised by the
global economic crisis, deepening poverty, inequality and diminishing
social and human rights across the world. In such uncertain times,
human and social rights matter even more, but in accordance with the
neoliberal agenda, human and social rights are under attack by various
governments across the globe. Beyond this, the question arises if
existing diversity and human and social right gains are at risk due to
the crisis and austerity.

In light of this, this topic welcomes papers, which explore the impact
of crisis and austerity on different dimensions of paid work, such as:
a) employment conditions (involuntary part-time and temporary
contracts/ zero-hour contracts, in-work poverty, unemployment and
sectoral segregation, working conditions in terms of infringement and
restrictions of rights, entitlements and working hours, etc.; b) human
and social rights at work; c) diversity, equality and inclusion at
work; d) HRM practices.

We also welcome theoretical/empirical papers, which suggest forms of
response and solidarity to the threat of a backlash in employment
conditions, diversity gains, human and social rights at work,
involving for example trade unions, social corporates, grass-roots
movements, NGOs, policy makers, diversity and human rights advocates,
etc.

Finally, we welcome comparative papers as well as single country
cases, which highlight the impact of the context of the respective
country or countries on how employment conditions, HRM practices,
diversity, human and social rights issues are dealt with during times
of crisis and austerity.

Submissions from 1 December 2015 το 12 January 2016 (2 pm Belgian time)

http://www.euram-online.org/annual-conference-2016.html

Olivia Kyriakidou │ Assistant Professor in Organizational Behavior |
Director of Doctoral Studies | Director of the Unit of Social
Entrepreneurship | Athens University of Economics and Business |
Patision 76, 104 34 Athens│ Τ: 210 8203384 │M: 6972101617
│www.aueb.gr| www.use.aueb.gr | www.dose.aueb.gr |
mailto:okyriakidou@aueb.gr |