The increased prevalence of team-oriented forms of production necessitates that we pay greater attention to the role of coworker relations in determining the nature and quality of work life. This article uses systematic analysis of the existing population of organizational ethnographies in conjunction with a more traditional telephone survey to generate new findings about coworkers and to verify these findings across research methods. The author finds that coworker conflict is negatively associated with both job satisfaction and good relations with management. Conversely, coworker solidarity generates high levels of job satisfaction. Somewhat surprisingly, coworker solidarity also is associated with better relations with management. The latter finding suggests that a significant component of positive vertical relations in the workplace rests on mutual support and solidarity among workers. These findings have implications for the development of team-oriented forms of production and suggest the need for renewed research on coworker relations as a foundation for understanding the contemporary workplace.
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