Alan Fox in the shadow of the labour process

PurposeThe 50th anniversary of Fox'sBeyond ContractandMan Mismanagementcoincides with another vital contribution to the sociology of work from 1974: Braverman'sLabor and Monopoly Capital. This article analyses these two scholars' complementary approaches to job design and the extent to which Fox's ideas influenced subsequent labour process thought.Design/methodology/approachThe article's methodological approach is a historiographical reading of Fox and Braverman's thought in the context of their times and later scholarship.FindingsThe article demonstrates that despite some noteworthy overlap with Braverman concerning scientific management, Fox's insights were marginal to later iterations of labour process analysis. It delves into the reasons for this relative neglect, providing an understanding of the dynamics at play.Originality/valueThis paper's value lies in its combined industrial relations and labour process historiography. It offers a fresh perspective on Alan Fox's relationship to the latter field of study.