ALEXANDER KOWALSKI

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Alex Kowalski is an assistant professor in the Human Resource Studies department at Cornell University’s ILR School.

Alex studies how to support good quality jobs in challenging business environments. He currently focuses on the ways managers foist business risk and market uncertainty onto their workforce. He asks why and how managers make this shift, what it means for workers and firm performance, and how the negative consequences can be remedied, with an emphasis on bringing worker voices into the solution.

His research takes place primarily inside e-commerce fulfillment centers, where demand volatility and intense time pressures often give rise to unpredictable work schedules that employees feel to be out of their control. Using a variety of research methods ranging from interviews to field experiments, he shows how certain managerial strategies generate problematic schedules, how these schedules tend to accrue to already disadvantaged employees, and how these schedules are costly to employers.

Fulfillment centers are part of the rapidly evolving warehousing industry. A setting replete with contrasts, warehouses are employing more and more people as e-commerce grows yet are also sites where concerns about job quality are primary and innovation in robotics is proceeding apace. In addition to his focus on scheduling practices, Alex is also carrying out projects inside warehouses that look into the challenges of implementing performance pay systems, competing approaches to robotic automation, and the benefits of involving employees in workplace problem-solving.

By conducting his research out in the field, in actual workplaces, Alex tries to make his findings useful for business practitioners. He brings these insights into the classroom, where he teaches classes on High Road, high performance management and human resource practices, as well as on the ingredients of a good job.

Alex’s earlier work takes a broader look at the changing nature of work and organizations and has been published in ILR Review, Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, and Negotiation Journal.

He received his PhD from MIT. He also holds a Master’s in City Planning from UC-Berkeley. Before graduate school, he was an economics reporter for Bloomberg News.


Research

Published
  • Riordan, C. A., & Kowalski, A. M. (2021). From bread and roses to #MeToo: Multiplicity, distance, and the changing dynamics of conflict in IR theory. ILR Review, 74(3), 580–606.
    Show abstract A central assumption in industrial relations theory is that conflict is rooted in an enduring difference between the interests of labor and management. In recent years, the reality of work has changed for many, and scholarship has called attention to overlooked dimensions of conflict that depart from this assumption. The authors account for these developments with the concepts of multiplicity and distance. Multiplicity means that a broad range of actors bring diverse goals, tied to identities and values in addition to interests, to the employment relationship. The competing and fluid motivations that stem from these goals alter how actors individually and collectively name conflict. Distance reflects a growing rift between those who control work and those who labor, rooted in prevailing organizational forms and practices and the transformation of institutions. Distance alters actors’ interdependence and their perceived and actual power in addressing conflict. From these observations, the authors derive propositions suggesting directions for research and theory regarding conflict and the institutions through which actors balance goals.
  • Kochan, T. A., Riordan, C. A., Kowalski, A. M., Khan, M., & Yang, D. (2019). The changing nature of employee and labor-management relationships. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 6(1), 195–219.
    Show abstract This article reviews work and employment research, paying particular attention to theory and applications by scholars in organizational psychology and organizational behavior (OP/OB) and employment or industrial relations (ER), with the objective of better understanding employee and labor-management relationships. Our animating premise is that juxtaposing these two research traditions provides a stronger basis for analyzing these relationships today. OP/OB offer micro- and meso-level focuses, whereas ER focuses on organizations, collective actors, and labor markets, with an emphasis on historical context. We hope this review motivates efforts to think about and build new social and psychological contracts that are attuned to the evolving dynamics present in the economy, workforce, and society. To this end, we look to the future and propose ways of deepening, broadening, and accelerating the pace of research that might lead to useful changes in practices, institutions, and public policies.
  • Kochan, T. A., Dyer, L., Cutcher-Gershenfeld, J., & Kowalski, A. M. (2018). Negotiating a new social contract for work: An online, distributed approach. Negotiation Journal, 34(2), 187–206.
    Show abstract A massive open online course (MOOC) entitled “Shaping the Future of Work” (offered through MITx, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s online learning division) has been the context for a multiparty simulation designed to produce classroom negotiation results that will have social impacts. After running the course in the MOOC context three times and in face‐to‐face settings eight times, we noticed that key themes emerged. Participants have brought their own workforce perspectives to their simulation roles as employers, worker representatives, elected officials, and educators. They have called for reciprocal agreements centered on fair treatment and representation in the workplace, improved organizational performance, investments in skills and capabilities, aligned rewards and benefits for workers, and work–life balance in communities. We continue to use the simulation in the classroom and are exploring ways to expand its use. In the meantime, in this article, we discuss how the insights gleaned from this simulation could be used to crystallize and advance a new social contract at a time when the public policies, institutions, and organizational practices governing employment relations have not kept up with the dramatic changes taking place in the workforce, nature of work, and overall economy.
Work in progress

  • Kowalski, A.M., Gutelius, B., Pinto, S., & Vallas, S.P. At the mercy of the market? E-commerce and warehouse work in the United States.

    Show abstract

    Logistics work has become central to the economy as online shopping has grown into a familiar consumer practice. Yet little research has systematically studied work inside warehouses, a key location in the logistics system. The authors examine the quality of warehouse employment, testing the proposition that, as retailers compete for online consumers, their emphasis on e-commerce exposes workers to harsher job conditions. They use data from three surveys, one providing a national sample of warehouse workers in the U.S. and two targeting workers at Walmart and Amazon, the country’s major retail rivals. They find that e-commerce negatively affects warehouse job quality but that these effects are most pronounced at Amazon, whose business depends more heavily on online transactions. Future research should explore whether retailers competing with Amazon feel pressured to adopt similar labor practices, serving customers in ways that exact a toll on workers employed behind the screen.

  • Kowalski, A.M., Kelly, E.L., Rahmandad, H., & Siebach, K. F. Can a voice channel reduce turnover? Evidence on employee voice and exit from a cluster-randomized trial in U.S. fulfillment centers.

    Show abstract

    Building on the long tradition of research on employee voice and its potential impact on both employee and organizational outcomes, we investigate whether a new voice channel reduces turnover in e-commerce fulfillment centers. A cluster-randomized trial compared hourly workers in sites randomized to launch the new voice channel (Health and Well-Being Committees, or HaWCs) with those employed by the same firm in control sites. This participatory intervention involved a small group of frontline workers and supervisors who solicited concerns and ideas about safety, work processes, and other workplace stressors from the broader workforce and then developed and implemented improvement projects in response. HaWCs were an isolated change, rather than one component of a broader high-involvement work system, and they were implemented in non-union worksites, raising questions about their likely impact. Using administrative data on the population of hourly workers, an intent-to-treat (ITT) analysis finds individual workers’ monthly probability of exit fell by 1.3%-points in HaWC buildings in the year after randomization, representing a 20% decline relative to pre-intervention exit rates. Workers in buildings where HaWCs completed more projects were less likely to exit, showing that voice can yield visible improvements in the work environment that help retain workers. HaWCs also reduced exits over and above both pre-existing and new, alternative channels for soliciting employee input, suggesting that additional benefits flow from the HaWCs’ participatory nature. These findings indicate the feasibility of addressing turnover and improving the work environment through employee voice, even in tough conditions like fulfillment centers.

  • Kowalski, A.M. Unfulfilled: Collaborative robots and the persistence of tough jobs in e-commerce warehousing.

    Show abstract

    This paper investigates how collaborative robots transform work in e-commerce fulfillment centers (FCs). While collaborative robots are heralded for their potential to enhance jobs by augmenting human capabilities, taking on undesirable tasks, and giving workers more command over their work, the actual effects of these technologies on work and workers are underexplored. Using data from a survey of more than 1,500 hourly workers employed in 16 FCs operated by a U.S. retailer, I compare job content and worker attitudes across facilities that use one of three main technologies to retrieve customer orders: collaborative robots, conveyors, and hand-pulled carts. The findings show that collaborative robots do not significantly improve job quality compared to the older technologies. Relative to workers in cart facilities, workers in robotic facilities report lower levels of job satisfaction, decision authority, skill discretion, and support from supervisors and coworkers, along with increased job insecurity, turnover intentions, and alienation. The reported levels are similar to those found in conveyor facilities. In light of these findings, collaborative robots appear to be a refined means of worker control rather than a liberating departure from past automating technologies. They are likely to impose burdens on a growing number of workers as the e-commerce industry expands and as they find their way into other sectors.

  • Siebach, K.F., Díaz-Linhart, Y.L., Kubzansky, L.D., Berkman, L., Wang, M., Ge, L., Kowalski, A.M., Rahmandad, H., & Kelly, E.L. Effectiveness of a participatory voice intervention on psychological well-being among warehouse workers: Results from the fulfillment center intervention study.

    Show abstract

    Objectives. To examine whether a novel workplace intervention designed to increase worker voice can reduce psychological distress and improve emotional vitality at 6- and 12-months follow-up.

    Methods. We conducted a cluster-randomized trial between 2021 and 2023 in 16 fulfillment centers (e-commerce warehouses) throughout the United States. Surveys captured psychological distress and emotional vitality of frontline workers at three time points; 2813 workers participated in at least one survey. Fulfillment centers randomized to the intervention established a new, participatory committee called the Health and Well-Being Committee (HaWC). We used separate multilevel linear regression models to estimate intervention effects on psychological distress and emotional vitality. We also explored differential treatment effect by gender.

    Results. Baseline prevalence of moderate or severe psychological distress was 51%. Workers in intervention sites had lower average psychological distress at 6-months compared to control sites. However, there was no significant intervention effect at the 12-month follow-up. Gender analyses suggest the HaWC was particularly effective in reducing psychological distress among men at 6-month follow-up.

    Conclusions. Our study contributes important experimental evidence on workplace interventions that improve the mental well-being of low-wage U.S. populations.

  • Kowalski, A.M. How to squeeze the lemon: Local organizational cultures and varied management practices.

  • Kowalski, A.M. and Kelly, E.L. The toll of toil: The turnover costs of problematic work schedules.

Teaching

Alex has developed two courses at Cornell. The first, People and Profits: HR Strategies for Good Jobs, is a class aimed at undergraduates and master’s students that reviews the best practices that businesses are using to treat their employees well while remaining competitive. The second, Building Better Jobs, is an undergraduate seminar that draws on ethnographies of work to figure out what it would mean to have a high quality job in the age of automation. More details below.

  • ILRHR 4645/6645 People and Profits: HR Strategies for Good Jobs
    Show course details Economic, social, technological, and political upheaval are transforming the workplace. What role do managers and HR professionals have in shaping how these transformations play out? In this course, we will debate whether, in responding to these challenges, those who manage people must choose between running a profitable business and treating their employees well. To arrive at an answer, we will begin by identifying the most pressing HR issues inside organizations today, ranging from burnout and scheduling inflexibility to earnings inequality and limited career mobility. Next, we will develop a framework for assessing and promoting high quality jobs. We will then use case studies, cutting-edge research, and conversations with business professionals and workers to explore how certain organizations are able to provide good jobs while remaining competitive. Throughout our exploration, we will have realistic conversations about how difficult it can be to drive positive change. At the end of the course, students will be asked to put forth their own ideas for balancing people and profits.
  • ILRHR 2685 Building Better Jobs
    Show course details This seminar explores the dirty, dull, and dangerous jobs that many science and technology experts believe can and should be replaced by robots, algorithms, artificial intelligence, and other recent innovations. Rather than accept that certain jobs are inherently bad, we will critically examine what can make even the toughest work rewarding and the most prestigious career unfulfilling. We will use our insights to sketch out the key determinants of a good quality job and then learn about evidence-based policies and practices that organizations can use to evaluate and improve the jobs they offer.

Media

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Contact

You can reach me at alex.email.kowalski [at] cornell.edu.

A note to practitioners: A key component of my work is going inside workplaces to speak with workers and managers, those who know the challenges best and who also often have the best idea for how to fix things. Do you run, work for, or know a company that wants to offer better jobs or that should be highlighted for already offering them? Reach out and tell me about it.