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Work and Employment in a Global Context

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26.05.2008

A Universität Duisburg-Essen's researcher is part of an international team led by the Interuniversity Research Centre on Globalization and Work (CRIMT) that will conduct a vast study of work and employment in a global context.

This team, including Gerhard Bosch, Director of the Institut Arbeit und Qualifikation (Institute Work, Skills and Training) at the University Duisburg-Essen, will receive one of the four 2.5 million dollar grants awarded this year by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) through its Major Collaborative Research Initiatives program (MCRI).

"The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council funds research that builds understanding of complex issues that affect our society," said SSHRC president Chad Gaffield. "The MCRI program supports leading-edge interdisciplinary research and fosters international collaboration, strengthening Canada's leadership role in global research".

The CRIMT team will examine the involvement of institutional players in dialogues about change and seek to gain a better understanding of the capabilities required to evolve and thrive in this new environment. Key issues include the cross-border organization of production and care, citizenship in the workplace and the implementation of public policies that redistribute work rights and risks, new forms of collective representation, and the social aspects of comparative institutional advantage.

"Globalization is rewriting the rules in workplaces across the globe. People in the world of work need maps and new ways to dialogue about change but the ones on offer in many countries are just not up to the task," said Professor Murray, who is leading this research program. "This international project is about developing new tools, new capabilities and new institutions so that players in the world of work can see current trends as an opportunity to shape the kind of society they want to live in."

"European employment models are currently under considerable pressure to change. Globalisation is one of the most important influencing factors. Restructuring itself must take place primarily at national level. The CRIMT network offers the great possibility to learn from the different national responses to the same challenges" said Gerhard Bosch from the Institut Arbeit und Qualifikation.

CRIMT is an interuniversity and interdisciplinary research centre that brings together researchers from around the world to look at the theoretical and practical challenges of institutional renewal for work and employment in a global context. Its director (Gregor Murray) and co-directors (Jacques Bélanger and Christian Lévesque) are located at Université de Montréal, Université Laval and HEC Montréal. CRIMT includes 75 researchers from 16 Canadian universities and 25 institutions and universities from 10 other countries, including Gerhard Bosch from Universität Duisburg-Essen.

The Institute for Work, Skills and Training at the University Duisburg-Essen is a centre for interdisciplinary and international comparative research in the social sciences, with a particular focus on employment, welfare systems, skills and training. The Institute carries out both basic and applied research. It currently employs 35 researchers.

For Further Information:
Gerhard Bosch
Phone +49 209 1707 147
Fax +49 209 1707 124
Email: gerhard.bosch@uni-due.de

Beate Kostka | Source: Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Further information: www.crimt.org/
www.iaq.uni-due.de/

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