Changing Spatialities of Employment: Geographies of Industry and Services

Employment is the right to work, from the peculiar perspective of the spatial conditions and opportunities. Against the backdrop of the intense development of ICTs and their effects on labour, spaces, and socioeconomic dynamics, the terms “production” and “employment” need to be referred to economic activities, in which the separation between manufacturing, services, and retail sectors is increasingly blurred. The spatial dimension of the employment (the workplaces) is a crucial effect provided by both the spatial transformation of industrial spaces and services spaces, to the ongoing multifaceted urban and regional change transformation. The essay is articulated in an Introduction, a First section dedicated to "The Spaces of Industrial Production" (1) - with the sub-parts "Shrinkage in industrial areas", "Spaces for manufacturing industry outside Global North" and "The Geography of the knowledge-based economy"; a Second section focusing on "Service Sector: Office and Directional Districts", with the related sub-parts "Metropolitan specialization and relations with the urban centers", "Geographies and types of office-service workplaces" and "A Sustainable transition: Changes in progress and relevant Issues". A third section is dedicated to "The Workspaces of sharing economy", with an in-deep conclusion focusing on "The Spaces for employment and SDG - Sustainable development goal 11".