“You Can’t Put a Price on it”: Bringing out the ‘Hidden’ Values of Work through the Lens of Gift-Giving

The values associated with work have long been debated, especially within capitalist systems where labour is typically understood through the categories of exchange and use value. This paper argues for a broader perspective by foregrounding social relationships and the values they embody, such as solidarity and mutual aid, which are often overlooked because they are ‘free’, ‘unpaid’, or ‘unproductive’ and excluded from formal accounting systems. Drawing on gift-giving theory, we conceptualize these aspects of work as intrinsically valuable, proposing the notion of ‘bonding value’ to capture how social relationships generate value beyond strict instrumentality. This theoretical contribution challenges economistic and productivist views of labour by highlighting the need to recognize and value these neglected dimensions of work. By revealing the ‘hidden’ values embedded in organizational life, the present study argues for a reconsideration of how organizations can design, support, and manage social relationships at work in ways that go beyond purely economic measures.