Work-Net International
Purpose
This international network connects centres and institutes studying work and employment. The purpose is to provide mutual support to centres engaged in interdisciplinary research on work and employment with the aims of raising awareness of the network’s high-quality research, stimulating further research activity especially through international comparative projects, increasing the network’s influence on international academic and policy debates on work and employment and attracting more scholars into this field.
Motivation for forming Work-Net
It is through a multi- and inter-disciplinary approach that the most important insights into the world of work can be developed. The network centres and institutes draw on a range of disciplines including economics, sociology, law, geography, political economy, social psychology, history and business and management. This inter-disciplinarity is a key strength of the network, and members are producing insightful research on the pivotal role played by work and employment in people’s lives and in economic and social development.
Yet its impact on both economic and social research and on policy debates deserves to be stronger, particularly at this time when major changes are expected in work and employment that raise both new challenges and opportunities. This network will strengthen the influence of work and employment research on public debate and wider academic discourses and help support the analysis of both progress towards and barriers to the achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those of Decent Work and Economic Growth, Gender Equality, and Reduced Inequalities.
The added value of Work-Net
The aim is to complement existing international networks of individual researchers by embedding connections between centres and institutes. Longer term the goal is also to provide support for emerging centres in countries with underdeveloped capacities for research in work and employment.
The network will:
- strengthen international and national linkages between areas of excellence in work and employment research;
- facilitate development of new international networks of early career researchers and doctoral students;
- expand opportunities for short term visits and collaborations for junior and senior researchers;
- enable international study groups on new academic topics, on policy issues and in response to new crises and emergencies;
- facilitate the identification of partners and advisory board members for comparative research projects;
- facilitate knowledge exchange and dissemination opportunities;
- provide timely information on national and international job vacancies and PhD opportunities;
- facilitate the sharing of ideas and materials in relation to new methodologies, new areas of research and new teaching developments.
Governance
Steering group
- CAROW - Center for Applied Research on Work, ILR School, Cornell University, USA
- CEET - Centre d'Etudes de l'Emploi et du Travail, Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France
- CRIMT - Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur la mondialisation et le travail/Interuniversity Research Centre on Globalization and Work, University of Montreal, Canada
- Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Milan, Italy
- Fafo, Oslo, Norway
- FAOS - Forskningscenter for Arbejdsmarkeds- og Organisationsstudier/ Employment Relations Research Centre, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- IAQ - Institut Arbeit und Qualifikation/Institute for Work, Skills and Training, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany
- QUIT-IET - Sociological Research Centre on Everyday Life and Work – Centre d’Estudis Sociològics sobre la Vida Quotidiana i el Treball/Institute for Labour Studies, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain
- SCIS - Southern Centre for Inequality Studies, Wits University, Johannesburg, South Africa
- WEI - Work and Equalities Institute, University of Manchester, UK
Member institutes
Australian Centre for Gender Equality and Inclusion @ Work, The University of Sydney
The Australian Centre for Gender Equality and Inclusion @ Work at the University of Sydney is a multidisciplinary research initiative that leverages several decades of research expertise on women’s working lives and produces research-informed insights, developed using new workplace data, to develop targeted and effective gender equality interventions. The centre is organised around four key themes: designing gender equality into the future of work; breaking gendered market segregation; making work and care work for all; and constructing vibrant respectful workplaces.
WOW (Research Centre for Work, Organisation & Wellbeing), Griffith University
WOW is an internationally recognised research centre in the Griffith University’s Business School, and consists of expert researchers from Human Resource Management, Organisational Behaviour, Design & Engineering, Medicine, and Business Innovation. WOW’s three research themes directly reflect the Centre’s vision and research expertise: Health, Safety and Wellbeing at work; Diversity and inclusion at work; and Technology and Innovation at work.
FORBA – (Forschungs- und Beratungsstelle Arbeitswelt/ Working Life Research Centre), Vienna
Research at the FORBA institute specialises in issues of work and employment. FORBA’s research deals with the micro level of the individual, social interaction and working conditions and the meso level of the organisation or network as well as with the macro level of the labour market and global economy. Research practice at the institute draws on both qualitative and quantitative methods.
ETUI (European Trade Union Institute), Brussels
The ETUI conducts research and provides scientific, educational, and technical support to the European Trade Union Confederation and its affiliates. The Institute’s expertise and expert networks are deployed to serve workers’ interests at European level and to support the strengthening of the EU social dimension. The ETUI conducts studies on socio-economic topics and industrial relations and monitors European policy developments of strategic importance for the world of labour.
Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources, University of Toronto
The Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources brings together internationally esteemed faculty, instructors and IR/HR professionals to teach and conduct consequential research on the evolving nature of work. Recognised for its 60-year contribution to the field, the CIRHR leverages a world-class library and a rich, multi-disciplinary community to advance IR/HR research, education, and public policy in Canada in areas of workplace democracy, diversity and inclusion, and collective bargaining to name a few.
CRIMT (Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur la mondialisation et le travail/Interuniversity Research Centre on Globalization and Work), University of Montreal
The Interuniversity Research Centre on Globalization and Work (CRIMT) is focused on the theoretical and practical challenges associated with changes in work and employment. It focuses on organisational and institutional experimentation in an era of digitalisation, health and climate crisis, fissured workplaces, global production networks, state transformations and shifting identities, values and solidarity. These are all fault lines of change that are shaking up the world of work and giving rise to various forms of experimentation.
School of Labor and Human Resources, Renmin University of China, Beijing
The School of Labor and Human Resources in China has expertise in labour economics, human resource management, labour relations, and social security. It is distinguished by its top-tier research, practical impact and global partnerships, and its role in significantly shaping human resources practices and policies nationally and internationally.
FAOS (Forskningscenter for Arbejdsmarkeds- og Organisationsstudier/ Employment Relations Research Centre), University of Copenhagen
FAOS was founded in 1990 and studies the labour market and industrial relations/employment relations, applying Danish, Nordic, European and international perspectives. FAOS is mainly funded by the Danish social partner organisations and the Danish Ministry of Employment, but receives additional funding from Danish, Nordic and European research funds. The research centre consists of 12 -14 researchers as well as PhD students.
WRC (Work Research Centre), Tampere University
The Work Research Centre (WRC) aims to promote research in sustainable work and working life as well as supporting undergraduate and post-graduate training. The disciplines represented include sociology, social psychology, social policy, administrative science, psychology, and education. The WRC’s research focuses on i) employment policies, labour markets and exclusion, (ii) technological change and transformation of labour and work, (iii) power relationships, and (iv) well-being in working life.
CEET, (Centre d’Etudes de l’Emploi et du Travail), Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris
The CEET is a multidisciplinary research centre on labour and employment issues. It brings together economists, sociologists and ergonomists, and its research themes include inequalities in the labour market, public employment and labour policies, industrial relations, life and career paths, working conditions, and organisational and technological change.
LEST (Laboratoire d'Économie et de Sociologie du Travail/Institute of Labour Economics and Industrial Sociology), CNRS and Aix-Marseille University
LEST was established in 1969 to develop research on labour, employment, training and innovation in the social sciences and humanities. Our current research priorities are around transformations of work in view of ecological and human issues; international mobilities and migrations with a focus on young people; and understanding the transformations of organizational models and working conditions through the lens of professional and social relations at work.
IAB (Institute for Employment Research), Nuremburg
The Institute for Employment Research (IAB) conducts research across the labour market from the perspective of a wide range of disciplines and in a societal context. High-quality research and comprehensive robust data provide the foundations for expert policy advice and the professional sharing of knowledge.
IAQ (Institut Arbeit und Qualifikation/Institute for Work, Skills and Training), University of Duisburg-Essen
The IAQ is a research institute at the University of Duisburg-Essen. It conducts interdisciplinary and international comparative social science research in the fields of work and employment, social protection, education, and training. IAQ advocates for the sustainable design and organisation of work and welfare systems against the background of social and technological change and provides advice for businesses, policymakers and civil society.
iaw (Institut Arbeit und Wirtschaft/Institute of Labour and Economy), University of Bremen
The iaw is a joint endeavour of the University of Bremen and the Arbeitnehmerkammer, a non-profit legal organisation that represents the interests of employees in all sectors in the state of Bremen. Through interdisciplinary research, academic consulting, public forums, and political engagement, the iaw contributes to the ongoing public discourse about reshaping the economy and society, and lobbies for political and economic change.
SOFI (Soziologisches Forschungsinstitut/Sociological Research Institute Göttingen), Georg-August University Göttingen
The Sociological Research Institute Göttingen, founded in 1968, is a non-profit research institute that is connected to the University of Göttingen. Around 30 researchers are doing public funded research in areas including sociology of work and labour, labour relations, sociology of public goods, and social cohesion as well as research around issues of socio-ecological transformation.
WSI (Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaftliches Institut/Institute of Economic and Social Research), Dusseldorf
The Institute of Economic and Social Research (WSI) is an independent academic institute within the Hans-Böckler-Foundation, a non-profit organisation fostering co-determination and promoting research and academic study on behalf of the German Confederation of Trade Unions (DGB). Since its founding in 1946, the institute has always focused on the improvement of life chances, on social justice and fair working and living conditions.
Department of Social and Political Sciences, University of Milan
The Department of Social and Political Sciences of the University of Milan hosts several research groups that investigate different aspects of working life, including collective representation, collective bargaining, and social concertation; new professions and non-union representation; employment policies and labour market outcomes, including poverty and low-wage work; welfare systems, social policies and pensions; education and training systems; and gender studies.
Korea Labor Institute (KLI), Seoul
Founded in 1988, the Korea Labor Institute (KLI) is South Korea's national think tank on employment and labour. KLI has played a pivotal role in researching and proposing policies on the labour market and industrial relations in Korea. KLI conducts research, studies, and programs in various areas, including labour market, employment policy, industrial relations, human resource management, labour law, employee welfare, labour insurance, and training programs for social partner leaders.
AIAS-HSI, University of Amsterdam
AIAS-HSI is an interdisciplinary research institute for labour studies in the Law Faculty of the University of Amsterdam. AIAS-HIS is committed to combining and integrating legal and social scientific theoretical perspectives and methods in the study of labour market institutions and outcomes. AIAS-HSI is composed of researchers from various disciplinary backgrounds, including law, sociology, economics and political science.
Fafo, Oslo
Fafo is an independent social science research foundation that develops knowledge on the conditions for participation in working life, organisational life, society and politics, the relationship between politics and living conditions, democracy, and development. Our research on the labour market includes collective organisation and regulation, social dialogue, collective agreements and wage formation.
Department of the Sociology of Work and Economic Sociology, Institute of Sociology, University of Wrocław
The Department of the Sociology of Work and Economic Sociology hosts research projects concerned with comparative industrial relations, job quality and precarity, labour migration, digitalisation and platformisation, social resilience, essential work and poly-crisis. While often employing mixed methods, the Department excels in qualitative, life story research. Ongoing research is externally funded, among others, by the National Science Centre in Poland and European Commission grants.
SCIS (Southern Centre for Inequality Studies), Wits University Johannesburg
The Southern Centre for Inequality Studies (SCIS) is an interdisciplinary research centre focused on understanding and addressing inequality in the global South, and around the world. The work of the SCIS is founded on principles of intersectionality, interdisciplinarity, and collaboration.
QUIT-IET (Sociological Research Centre on Everyday Life and Work – Centre d’Estudis Sociològics sobre la Vida Quotidiana i el Treball), Institute for Labour Studies (IET), Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB)
Established in 1991, the Sociological Research Centre on Everyday Life and Work (the QUIT centre) is a leading research centre in the field of Sociology of Work. It develops research related to the fields of Work and Everyday Life focused on the following major topics: time use, work and everyday life from a gender perspective; employment and labour market transformations; industrial relations and work organisation; labour market trajectories; and social mobility and inequalities.
Research Department, International Labour Organisation (ILO), Geneva
The Research Department of the ILO conducts research on labour and employment issues with the aim of contributing to policy formulation for ILO constituents. It is currently investigating the consequences for decent work of major transformative changes related to new technologies, inequalities and demographic shifts, climate change and trade and global supply chains. The Research Department produces the ILO’s annual Flagship publication, “World Employment and Social Outlook (WESO): Trends”, and is home to the ILO’s peer-reviewed academic journal, the International Labour Review.
Centre for Decent Work, University of Sheffield
Research by the Centre for Decent Work (CDW) focuses on four core themes: Employment and Job Quality; Equality, Inclusion and Voice; Labour in the Global Economy; and the Regulation and Governance of Work. Most of the research takes a political economy perspective, examining how the interplay of changes in government policies, national and international regulations and institutions, employer and trade union strategies and the changing international division of labour work and employment affect work and employment.
CERIC (Centre for Employment Relations Innovation and Change), University of Leeds
The central objective of the Centre for Employment Relations, Innovation and Change (CERIC) is to contribute to contemporary national and international debates around the changing dynamics and future of work, employment and labour. CERIC's research is concerned with how organisational restructuring and innovation shape patterns of continuity and change in employment relations. The consequences of such change are evaluated for different stakeholders and the centre is committed to developing new strategic and policy-relevant visions.
IER (Warwick Institute for Employment Research at The University of Warwick)
Warwick Institute for Employment Research (IER) has 40 years' experience of delivering high quality research and influential publications on the labour market and its relationships with the wider economy. It intentionally supports the work of policymakers and practitioners and has worked successfully with major Government departments and ministries, research councils and agencies at national and international levels. It brings together a breadth of labour market expertise from a variety of disciplines.
Work and Equalities Institute (WEI), University of Manchester
The Work and Equalities Institute, founded in 2017 from the merger or two longer standing centres, aims to identify and promote the conditions for more inclusive and fair work and employment arrangements. Its four current themes are: work futures; fairness and wellbeing in the workplace; equality, diversity and inclusion; and regulation and representation.
CAROW (Center for Applied Research on Work) ILR School, Cornell University
CAROW exists to connect research on work with the practice of putting it to use. We support member institutes and affiliated faculty and students in their efforts to take insights about work, labour and employment and share them broadly. CAROW is uniquely placed to seed innovative research projects and partnerships that put academic study into practice. Through training, convening, and the development of new tools, CAROW provides resources to change work for the better.
Center for Global Work and Employment, Rutgers University
The Centre for Global Work and Employment explores the consequences of a deepening global economy for the governance of work through research, curriculum innovation, and public engagement. Founded in 2015, the Centre has provided a supportive community and productive space for scholarship on global transformations in work and employment.
IRLE (Institute for Research on Labor and Employment), University of California at Berkeley
The Institute for Research on Labor and Employment at the University of California, Berkeley promotes better understanding of the conditions, policies, and institutions that affect the well-being of workers and their families and communities. We inform public debate with hard evidence about inequality, the economy, and the nature of work. IRLE is home to several nationally-recognized centers and programs that conduct research, education, and outreach on labor and employment issues. Our centers have played a leading role in finding solutions to the most urgent social and economic issues facing working families in California, providing in-depth research and policy analysis in areas such as minimum wage policies, the early childcare workforce, homelessness, and public sector labor and employment law.
IRLE (Institute for Research on Labor and Employment), University of California at Berkeley
The Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) is a multidisciplinary research centre dedicated to advancing labour research and education for workplace justice. Through the work of its units – UCLA Labor Centre, Human Resources Roundtable, and the Labor Occupational Safety and Health program – the Institute forms wide-ranging research agendas that carry UCLA into the Los Angeles community and beyond.
Contact us
Contact details: Work-Net@manchester.ac.uk