Sociology: work & labour

Drawing from interviews and survey data across the EU and the UK, this in-depth study explores how worker instability is perceived and experienced, and how this “perception” in turn affects individuals’ economic and social situation. Using intersectional analysis, the authors identify groups who are more prone to labour market risks.

Drawing on the experiences of young adults after the 2008 economic crisis in Spain, Emotions in Crisis analyses the impact of structural changes in society on individual and collective emotions.

Since the 1960s a major mental health crisis has emerged among Western working populations. Through a study spanning several decades, this book uses an original framework to capture the history and developments of mental vulnerability in working life.

Uncomfortably Off reveals that those generally considered to be the most affluent feel anxious about the future and struggle to keep up, or even to stay put., but reducing income inequality will benefit everyone, even those quite near the top.

Written and informed by national experts, this is the first publication to provide a detailed examination of the development, implementation and implications of carer leave policies and policies in 9 countries across Asia, Oceania, Europe and North America.

This book explores the experiences of ethnic performers' in a small Chinese city. Introducing the concept of ‘intimacy as a lens’, the author examines intimate negotiations involving emotions, sense of self and relationships as a way of understanding wider social inequalities.

Drawing on case studies from Germany, Britain and Spain, this book offers a novel assessment of labour struggles and class formation. Gallas explores key issues around class relations, struggles around waged and unwaged work and labour movements in contemporary capitalism to bring class theory back to labour studies.

Advancing a class-centred approach, this book provides an account of the evolution of social security and employment policy and governance in Britain between 1973 and 2023.

Drawing on case studies from Germany, Britain and Spain, this book offers a novel assessment of post-industrial action. Gallas explores key issues around union activities, class relations and struggles around unwaged work and brings class theory back to labour studies with a class-sensitive analysis of capitalism.

This book recaptures the buried history of the household science movement, including domestic science teaching, public health, higher education for women and the scientific content and aims of domestic science courses.

This book injects a fresh burst of energy into the sociology of work, offering an invigorating perspective that's both vibrant and deeply informed. Bringing the field up to date, leading sociology of work scholar Marek Korczynski offers an enlightening exploration of sociology of work, as well as the evolving world of work itself.

It is impossible to view the news at present without hearing talk of crisis: the economy, the climate, the pandemic. This book asks how these larger societal issues lead to a crisis with work, making it ever more precarious, unequal and intense. Experts diagnose the nature of the problem and offer a programme for transcending above the crises.