Vibes as value

Name: Vibes as value
Price: 255.01 AUD
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ISBN: 9781526187314

Young workers and affective labour in the service economy

David Farrugia, Julia Coffey, Steven Threadgold , Megan Sharp

$318.95 $255.01

Hardback

Forthcoming
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English

Manchester University Press
01 May 2026

Consumerism; Sociology: work & labour; Economics; Service industries

Vibes as value explores the relationship between subjectivity, labour and value in the hospitality industry, and thereby how youth, gender, sexuality, race and social class are embodied and made productive in the service economy. It shows that the key product of hospitality labour is 'vibes', or moments of enjoyment and relationality co-produced through exploitative relationships amongst workers and consumers. In the process, the book theorises hospitality as a form of affective labour organised through the normative and structural relations of precarious service work. It shows how identity construction produces value within the highly unequal social terrain of the service economy, and how hospitality labour enacts hierarchies of value extending far beyond the limits of the industry itself.

By: David Farrugia, Julia Coffey, Steven Threadgold, Megan Sharp, Lena Molnar
Imprint: Manchester University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm, Spine: 11mm
Weight: 424g
ISBN: 9781526187314
ISBN 10: 1526187310
Pages: 176
Publication Date: 01 May 2026
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Introduction: Labour, identity and value: Young hospitality workers 1 Hospitality as affective labour: Vibes as a product of work 2 Vibes as value: Youthful labour in the hospitality industry 3 Subjects of value: Gender, sexuality, desire and ‘diversity’ 4 Creating vibes whilst anticipating risk: Gendered violence in hospitality 5 Class, taste, and the politics of gentrification Conclusion: Labour, life and the politics of affect in hospitality References -- .

David Farrugia is ARC Future Fellow at Deakin University, Australia. Julia Coffey is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Steven Threadgold is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Megan Sharp is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Melbourne, Australia. Lena Molnar is a sociologist and the Research and Evaluation Lead at Women with Disabilities Victoria