Customising work through manager-employee exchange. This project will explore how managers and employees customise the terms and conditions of standardised employment arrangements. The results will inform legislation such as right to request provisions and organisational strategies such as manager training which support effective, mutually beneficial manager-employee exchanges.
Precarious employment and health: new knowledge, new solutions. This study examines why insecure forms of employment, such as casual work and self-employment, are usually associated with poorer health than more secure employment. The aim is to identify causes of these adverse effects and to develop policy and practice interventions to minimise them.
Efficiency, justice and voice: a study of effective ways to prevent and settle workplace disputes. Formal and informal dispute procedures are used to settle workplace conflict which, if not managed well, imposes major costs on society. This project aims to improve the design and implementation of dispute procedures. The research uses an innovative analytical approach based on the concepts of efficiency, workplace justice and employee voice.
Testing the integration and differentiation of national employment systems: multinational enterprises in an international comparative context. Multinational enterprises play a leading role in shaping employment practices as their power disproportionately influences the direction of change in managing people. This project, conducted across six countries, enhances our understanding of how these organisations influence and shape the employment practices and systems in host contexts.
Working at the margin: the consequences of non-standard employment. This project plans to use survey data tracking Australians through time to examine the impacts of non-standard employment on labour market outcomes and on their health and wellbeing. Around 40 per cent of Australian workers are in non-standard forms of employment. Such jobs are typically associated with job insecurity, unpredictable working hours, and limited opportunities for career progression, which can all negatively affect ....Working at the margin: the consequences of non-standard employment. This project plans to use survey data tracking Australians through time to examine the impacts of non-standard employment on labour market outcomes and on their health and wellbeing. Around 40 per cent of Australian workers are in non-standard forms of employment. Such jobs are typically associated with job insecurity, unpredictable working hours, and limited opportunities for career progression, which can all negatively affect worker wellbeing and long-term employment prospects. But such jobs can also serve as a crucial entry point into the labour market, and for some workers may be a better match with personal preferences. Project results may inform current debates about the need for greater or lesser regulation of employment arrangements.Read moreRead less
Trade union futures: purposes, capacities and organisation towards a green transition. What is the future of trade unions? They face uncertain futures especially in the traditional industrial communities. While unions are aware of these challenges it is unclear how they will renew themselves to meet the new conditions. The research will show how unions can contribute to an environmentally sustainable world.
Non-union employee representation in the workplace: debates and practice in Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States 1914-1939. This project uses comparative historical data to provide a clear direction for public policy in the development of frontier technology for employment relations infrastructure at the workplace level. This infrastructure would maximise workplace productivity, increase job satisfaction and provide a greater voice for employees in the workplace.
Taking the Pulse at Work: Employer-Employee Relations and Workplace Problems in Australia Compared to the United States. The project is an in-depth investigation using national surveys and company interviews of the state of employer-employee relations and breadth and depth of workplace problems in Australian enterprises. Topics only lightly covered in previous research get in-depth analysis: the cooperative versus adversarial climate in workplaces; the type and intensity of workplace problems ex ....Taking the Pulse at Work: Employer-Employee Relations and Workplace Problems in Australia Compared to the United States. The project is an in-depth investigation using national surveys and company interviews of the state of employer-employee relations and breadth and depth of workplace problems in Australian enterprises. Topics only lightly covered in previous research get in-depth analysis: the cooperative versus adversarial climate in workplaces; the type and intensity of workplace problems experienced by managers and employees; the effect of deteriorated relations and problems on organisational performance; and assessments of managers’ and employees’ strengths and shortcomings. Similar surveys are done for the USA to benchmark Australian experience and derive comparative lessons. Numerous measures for improvement in practice and policy are identified. Read moreRead less
The reality of China's socialist market economy: the emergence of labour segmentation and inequality. Australia's current regional and economic security is predicated on China's stability and prosperity. This project provides a unique opportunity for Australian organisations and institutions to gain a better understanding of the complex economic, regulatory and social issues that surround the problem of labour segmentation and inequality in China.
Precariousness in law and labour markets: the case of temporary migrant workers. This project examines the situation of temporary migrant workers in Australia, focusing on the nature and extent of their precariousness both in law and in labour market practice. It offers a major contribution to current research and policy debates on the implications of temporary migrant labour.