Introductory description

This module is concerned with contemporary labour law in the UK and global context. It combines legal analysis with a contextual and interdisciplinary understanding of key debates around the regulation of work. In addition to covering sources, institutions and principles of labour law, the module examines the manner and extent to which the law responds to the challenges of work in the current economy, characterised by processes of globalisation, digitalisation, migration, and the commodification and financialisation of particular areas of work. We will consider the law of labour relations within the UK, but also the impact of global economic integration on the design of labour law and policy and aspects of international and transnational labour law.

Module web page

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

Outline of topics:

1. The law and governance of labour relations: sources, institutions and approaches
2. The legal boundaries and socio-economic relations of labour
3. Personal employment contract
4. Job security, minimum wage and the regulation of dismissals
5. Non-discrimination, equality and rights
6. Trade unions and collective actions
7. ILO, labour standards and decent work initiatives
8. Informal, migrant and domestic workers
9. Workers in global supply chains and in the gig economy

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• 1. Demonstrate understanding of the concepts, rules and principles, their application and limits, across various key aspects of national and international labour law
• 2. Demonstrate ability to critically evaluate how social norms and relations such as gender, race, class, disability, age, etc and their intersections affect the conceptualisation of work and how this is embedded and normalised in labour law
• 3. Demonstrate awareness of, and ability to discuss, how the national and international socio-economic and political contexts, and the interactions of these contexts, affect the regulation of labour relations
• 4. Demonstrate ability to critically evaluate the suitability of employment contract and other theoretical alternatives as a means of conceiving and regulating employment relationships
• 5. Demonstrate understanding of the application and ability to reflect on the limits of statutory employment protection provisions, unfair dismissals and redundancy protection
• 6. Demonstrate understanding and ability to critically evaluate how labour law addresses issues of discrimination, inequality and work-life balance and the influence of human rights activism and legislation
• 7. Demonstrate understanding of the history of trade unions and their current role and status, the legal regulation of collective bargaining and/or the regulation of industrial conflict
• 8. Demonstrate awareness of the diverse influences that shape UK labour law including the role of trade unions, activism and the impact of international law
• 9. Demonstrate ability to critically reflect on the status of informal, migrant and domestic workers, workers sustaining global supply chains and the gig economy and interrogate current debates about the protection of these workers
• 10. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the developing international framework for regulation of the world of work and awareness of the controversies over the ability of the ILO to ensure compliance with labour standards and decent work initiatives
• 11. Develop critical and imaginative thinking by using the legal knowledge gained and its contextual and socio-economic underpinnings, to critically analyse and evaluate labour law’s effectiveness in regulating employment at the national and international and define potential reforms
• 12. Develop skills in policy evaluation across different aspects of labour law and different categories of workers
• 13. Develop advanced research skills specific to the analysis of the conceptualisation of work and the regulation of labour relations at the national and international level
• 14. Develop skills in planning a coherently structured research essay and constructing nuanced and well-reasons arguments
• 15. Develop teamwork skills as part of the policy-writing group work.

Indicative reading list

Generic Reading lists can be found in Talis

Research element

70 per cent of the summative assessment is constituted by a research essay.
From a formative point of view, students will be able to receive feedback on their essay outline and will attend a workshop on policy writing (group policy writing constitutes 30 per cent of the summative assessment)

Interdisciplinary

As evident in the proposed readings, the module will examine debates regarding the conceptualisation and regulation of work and in doing so will encourage students to engage with socio-legal, political economy, feminist literature, social policy. Students will also learn via documentaries, podcasts and movies.

International

The module pays particular attention to the interaction of the UK context with global dynamics of labour and processes of globalisation, economic integration, digitalisation and financialisation. The international scope of the module is also reflected in the readings.

Subject specific skills

• The module combines legal analysis and the transmission of practical skills on labour law with a highly contextual and interdisciplinary understanding of key debates around the regulation of work
• Develop critical and imaginative thinking by using the knowledge gained and its contextual and socio-economic underpinnings, to critically analyse and evaluate labour law’s effectiveness in regulating employment at the national and international and define potential reforms
• Develop skills in policy evaluation across different aspects of labour law and different categories of workers
• Develop advanced research and essay writing skills specific to the analysis of the conceptualisation of work and the regulation of labour relations at the national and international level.

Transferable skills

• Critical thinking
• Imaginative thinking: in deciding their policy writing they will need to reimagine the law
• Policy evaluation and writing
• Advanced research skills and skills in planning a coherently structured research essay and constructing nuanced and well-reasons arguments
• Teamwork skills as part of the policy-writing group work.