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...work-life balance and flexible employment are now firmly part of the mainstream. Yet these advances have been offset by the loss of labour power linked to the decline of trade unions and the emergence of the “gig economy”. Indeed, these empowering desires are up against it and, according to some, even ironically reinforce an often disempowering free-market reality....

...socially acceptable. In the latest review of the UK by the UN Human Rights Council, many concerns were raised about the effects of migration control. Policies are putting human rights out of reach for some in the UK. For example, some visas make employees dependent upon employers and unable to complain about abuse. Healthcare providers are being asked to police access....

...Social Sciences courses. Background During the First World War the railway network was a central part of the war effort. It was relied upon to transport medical supplies and military equipment, army personnel and horses, to the ports for export to the front. Women played a key role as they were charged with keeping the railways going, filling the gaps left by the 100,000...

...Social Sciences courses Background In the context of the growing ‘cost of living crisis’ in 2022, it’s unsurprising that trade union activity in Scotland has featured regularly in public discourse. Waste and recycling workers made headlines when they went on strike over pay and conditions in Glasgow during COP26 in November 2021; then in Edinburgh during the annual...

...Social Sciences qualification. Background The public, political and cultural representations of working-class activism in opposition to industrial closure are dominated by the image of the militant male worker. Leaders like Jimmy Reid, Arthur Scargill and high-profile disputes by miners, shipyard workers, car workers, steel workers and others are synonymous with...

...social and environmental value. A proposed solution is to create a more democratic sharing economy. In other words, a sharing economy where the corporate owners are held accountable by the wider public, and users and workers govern platforms together. But democratising the sharing economy is no mean feat. Research I’ve conducted with colleagues at the Open University...