Your search

During COVID-19, politicians and the media in North America spotlighted the contributions of essential workers. As many low-income essential services are performed by migrant workers, this study explores how the pandemic served as a critical moment to raise societal awareness of the disadvantaged circumstances faced by migrant workers and to garner public support for their rights and equality. Engaging with scholarly critiques of media representation of underprivileged migrant groups and migration and labor scholars’ work on migrant workers in Canada, the study examines mainstream media discourse and public discourse on essential workers and migrant workers in Canada during the pandemic. Adopting thematic and critical discourse analysis, the study reveals that nationalist ideology, intersected with capitalist and neoliberal ideologies, prevents the public from forming solidarity with migrant workers, although overt racist and xenophobic discourse diminishes, and advocacy voices begin to gain higher visibility in mainstream media. The study contends that mobilizing broader public support to tackle inequalities remains a crucial issue in the context of transnational labor migration.

Summary: Many young individuals now prioritize involvement in collective action as a means to instigate societal change. Crucially, they have access to social media platforms, which help them connect with like-minded peers and coordinate efforts. Some of them may be thus more inclined to favour less conventional collective action over formal union membership. In this study, which draws on data from young British workers during the period from December 2022 to March 2023, we endeavoured to ascertain this cohort’s preferred approach to collective action. We distinguished between an informal grassroots initiative and one led by a labour union as a means to advance the rights of gig economy workers. To this end, we conducted a controlled online experiment. We focused exclusively on a specific age cohort within a particular timeframe, thus limiting our ability to determine generational differences in preferences for collective action and in attitudes toward unions. Nevertheless, the results do offer insights into the forms of collective action preferred by Generation Z. British youth were found to view the informal grassroots initiative more positively than the union-led one. However, they viewed the latter as potentially having greater influence on government policy. Furthermore, they were not significantly more willing to join one initiative than the other. Nonetheless, they were more inclined to recommend the grassroots initiative. This paper contributes to the body of research on the relationship between labour unions and young people. It also provides insight into how members of Generation Z think about various ways of participating in collective action.

The article reviews the book, "The Story of Work, A New History of Humanity," by Jan Lucasssen.

Cet article vise à comprendre l’émergence et le développement d’une gestion des ressources humaines (GRH) inclusive en PME. Le concept d’inclusion renvoie à l’épanouissement professionnel et à la reconnaissance des salariés (Bonneveux et al., 2020). Cette forme de GRH comporte une visée intégrative dans la mesure où elle offre la possibilité d’améliorer la collaboration notamment entre le dirigeant et ses salariés. Dans cette optique, nous avons mobilisé de façon originale la logique du don de Mauss, couplée à la littérature sur la GRH en PME afin de proposer une nouvelle grille de lecture. À partir du cas emblématique d’une PME, une étude qualitative longitudinale a été menée sur une période de 8 ans. Les résultats soulignent le décalage entre les contre-dons attendus et ceux réellement réalisés par le dirigeant, qui conditionnent in fine l’adonnement des salariés. Ce déséquilibre dans la relation amène à la construction d’une GRH inclusive.

Describes the author's visit to the Ludlow Monument in Ludlow, Colorado, that memorializes the 1914 massacre of striking coal miners by national guard and private security forces of the Rockefeller-owned Colorado Iron and Fuel Company. Illustrations are included.

This study is about the impact of discriminatory job loss (DJL) on individual attitudes. It is based on interviews with 36 academics who were inequitably and involuntarily fired, and aggressively and punitively discriminated against. We extend previous research on workplace discrimination by exploring the effects of discriminatory job loss on a skilled workforce and by going beyond the job loss itself to examine coping mechanisms, resilience and post-traumatic growth. We found that gratitude, patience and optimism or pessimism about one’s future and career were leading individual factors in the ability to cope with discriminatory job loss. Such coping mechanisms, and their roles in resilience and post-traumatic growth, were described to us by academics in Turkey and abroad.

The article reviews the book, "Lessons in Legitimacy: Colonialism, Capitalism, and the Rise of State Schooling in British Columbia," by Sean Carleton.

The article reviews the book, "Pour sortir les allumettières de l’ombre. Les ouvrières de la manufacture d’allumettes E.B. Eddy de Hull (1854-1928)," by Kathleeen Durocher.

Using conservation of resources (COR) theory (Hobfoll, 1989, 2002), we first investigated the direct influence of overqualification on turnover intention. Second, we tested whether the perceived work-life balance affects the relationship between overqualification and turnover intention. To that end, we used questionnaires to conduct independent field studies of two groups of Canadian workers: 227 local human resources professionals and 237 immigrant employees. Both studies confirmed that perceived overqualification increased their intention to quit their jobs. Perceived work-life balance moderated the relationship between overqualification and turnover intention only among the immigrant employees. This paper sheds light on how perceived overqualification can affect the intention to quit a job among local and immigrant employees. It also shows how perceived work-life balance can affect the relationship between perceived overqualification and the intention to quit a job.

The article reviews the book, "Making Mexican Chicago: From Postwar Settlement to the Age of Gentrification," by Mike Amezcua.

Pays homage to the life and work of the labour and Jewish studies historian, Irving Abella (1940-2022).

This article examines the experiences of local union presidents with respect to gender equality. Based on a qualitative case study of members of union committees dedicated to the status of women and local union presidents working in the Québec education sector, our research points to an unprecedented breakthrough of women serving as local presidents. Nevertheless, the existence of a “triple burden,” the persistence of gender stereotypes and a male union culture, the lack of training and mentoring, and the reliance on solicitation are all hindering the achievement of gender equality. Our research findings also highlight a weak representation of the diversity of social identities within the union organization studied.

Cet article porte sur l’expérience des présidences impliquées dans les organisations syndicales locales au regard de l'égalité de genre. À partir d’une étude de cas qualitative menée auprès des membres de comités syndicaux de la condition féminine et de présidences syndicales locales du secteur de l’éducation du Québec, notre recherche fait valoir une percée sans précédent des femmes siégeant comme présidentes locales. Néanmoins, l’existence d’une « triple tâche », la persistance de stéréotypes de genre et d’une culture syndicale masculine, le manque de formation et de mentorat ainsi que le recours à la sollicitation nuisent à l’atteinte de l’égalité de genre. Nos résultats de recherche font aussi ressortir une faible représentation de la diversité des identités sociales au sein de l’organisation syndicale étudiée.

Lancée en mi-novembre 2023, cette grève engage près d’un demi-million de fonctionnaires soit l’essentiel des effectifs des secteurs publics c’est-à-dire, la santé et l’éducation, du primaire au collégial . Elle représente un affrontement historique avec l'État québécois sous deux thématiques essentielles : les salaires et les charges de travail.

The article reviews the book, "Deindustrializing Montreal. Entangled Histories of Race, Residence, and Class," by Steven High.

The article reviews the book, "Penal Servitude: Convicts and Long-Term Imprisonment, 1853-1948," by Helen Johnston, Barry Godfrey, and David J. Cox.

The article reviews the book, "Facteurs en Europe. Le syndicalisme face à la libéralisation et aux mutations des activités postales : Belgique, Bulgarie, Espagne, France et Royaume-Uni," edited by Paul Bouffartigue and Jean Vandewattyne.

La question de la représentation collective des cadres a été remise à l’ordre du jour récemment, à la suite de l’initiative de l’Association des cadres de la Société des casinos du Québec ainsi que de l’Association professionnelle des cadres de premier niveau d’Hydro-Québec, qui ont obtenu l’autorisation du Tribunal administratif du travail de se constituer en syndicats, malgré le statut de cadre de leurs membres. Cette décision, qui a été confirmée en février 2022 par la Cour d’appel du Québec, soulève de nombreux questionnements sur le futur de la représentation collective de cette catégorie de travailleurs. Cet article entend contribuer à la réflexion sur ce thème, en mettant en lumière les attentes qu’entretiennent les cadres du secteur parapublic québécois à propos de leurs associations représentatives et de leurs modes d’action. Pour ce faire, nous mobilisons des résultats provenant de deux recherches réalisées auprès de cadres du secteur de la santé et des services sociaux, membres de l’AGESSS, et du secteur de l’éducation, membres de l’AQCS. Ces cadres expriment leur accord face à d’éventuelles modifications de l’encadrement législatif de leurs relations de travail. Cela dit, ils ne manifestent pas pour autant une volonté de se syndiquer. Qui plus est, ils sont ambivalents quant à l’utilisation éventuelle de modes d’action revendicateurs. Nous posons l’hypothèse que ce rapport au syndicalisme est une affirmation identitaire, qui s’explique, entre autres, par la façon dont le Code du travail définit les acteurs des relations du travail.

The article reviews the book, "Petite histoire politique des banlieues populaires," by Hacène Belmessous.