Researching international labour policy, business/social indicators, IFIs/labour rights? Submit an abstract & join us in Durham in September: Quantifying the Global Business Environment - Business Indices, Labour Regulation & the World Bank in International Labour Policy👉: shorturl.at/mE8tT

My term ends this month, so today was my last meeting. As I depart, the data suggests the Scottish Government is missing its child poverty targets. Bolder and more transformative action is needed. See the latest scrutiny report here: povertyinequality.scot/publication/...

📢Calling researchers interested in labour indexes. Abstracts are invited for a Special Issue of the European Journal of Industrial Relations on 'Quantifying the Global Business Environment.' Deadline: 29th June. Further info: shorturl.at/mE8tT

📢 Unpaid carers could gain new workplace rights under Government proposals, including paid carer's leave and a right to return to work after a period of intensive caring. This could be a significant step forward for working carers. buff.ly/zaPN2sb

📢Abstracts are invited for the European Journal of Industrial Relations Special Issue on 'Quantifying the Global Business Environment.' Papers welcome on B-READY, labour indicators, the World Bank in international/domestic labour policy etc. Deadline: 29th June. Further info: shorturl.at/mE8tT

As the #PlatformEconomy Committee meets at the International Labour Conference in Geneva, some thoughts on the working time dimensions of the proposed Convention and Recommendation. On strengthening protection and ensuring remuneration for all working hours. shorturl.at/tba3g

📢👇Call for Abstracts: Special Issue of the European Journal of Industrial Relations. "Quantifying the Global Business Environment: Business Indices, Labour Regulation, and the World Bank in International Labour Policy." Deadline: 29 June. Workshop: Durham, 14 September. Details: shorturl.at/mE8tT.

On the impact of extreme heat on platform workers and the inability to fully rest or cool down. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Join us for a webinar on 'The Adjudication of Collective Rights: The Right to Strike before the International Court of Justice', with Jeffrey Vogt (Solidarity Center & ILAW Network) and Prof Shae McCrystal (Sydney). Tuesday 16 June 2026 @ 12.00pm AEST, online events.unimelb.edu.au/CELRL/event/...

My article on the World Bank's Business Ready Project, with Sangheon Lee @ilo.org, is in the latest issue of the Modern Law Review. On effective labour regulation, high-quality jobs, and the evolution of labour law policy at the international level. www.modernlawreview.co.uk/may-2026/wor...

Update on the decades-long path towards legal rights for domestic workers in Indonesia. www.ilo.org/resource/art...

New Which? research finds one in ten UK households – equivalent to three million households – skipping meals to cut shopping costs. www.which.co.uk/policy-and-i...

On the campaign to extend paternity leave in Ireland. www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/pe...

Hear the beautiful Lauridsen Lux Aeterna and Dvořák Mass in D Major in the splendour of Durham Cathedral. 16th May. Tickets 👇

New ILO report on the psychosocial working environment - job demands, role clarity, workload, autonomy, working time etc www.ilo.org/publications...

NEW: Long-term childhood poverty in Britain rose sharply after austerity reforms 📈 The study, by @sbeduk.bsky.social (Departmental Lecturer in Comparative Social Policy) & Anna Yong found that more than 1 in 5 children born after 2013 experience poverty for at least half their childhood.

New in the Modern Law Review on the World Bank's Business Ready (B-READY) Labor Topic, w/Sangheon Lee @ilo.org. The Bank's evolving deregulatory model; divergence from ILO standards; endorsement of very poor quality jobs; and the deficient assessment of labour laws' de facto effects. bit.ly/41ziI6U

Quick thoughts on the prospect of EDIS and the Crisis Management and Deposit Insurance (CMDI) package

Don't miss Durham Choral Society performing Morten Lauridsen’s Lux Aeterna and Dvořák’s Mass in D Major in Durham Cathedral. Saturday 16th May. Tickets 👉 durhamcathedral.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/...

"families like mine don’t talk about the cost of living any more – now it’s the cost of survival" important and compelling piece by Ella from @changingrealities.bsky.social today - www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Today the two-child limit is gone. Parents have told us what this will mean for their kids: - A first-ever birthday party for a 10-year-old - Better quality food - Clothes that aren't completely worn out - Going on the school trip without getting into debt - A new mattress - Swimming lessons

"The Department for Business and Trade said the employers concerned had repaid more than £7.3mn to around 60,000 workers, with fines of £12.6mn also issued to 389 employers." www.ft.com/content/1837...

'A committee of MPs in 2025 called the UK's parental leave system "one of the worst in the developed world."' www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

New brief from @ilo.org on risks of generative AI to occupations dominated by women. www.ilo.org/resource/new...

We ask who has authority to bring about constitutional change & how women have long been overlooked. We draw on #feminist theories exploring subjectivity, agency, #protest, and public space to articulate what feminist approaches to constituent power could be.

Myself & @ruthhoughton.bsky.social have a chapter out in Oxford Handbook of Constituent Power that focuses on #feminist approaches thnx Peter NiesenMarkusPatberg & Lucia Rubinelli for the invite academic.oup.com/edited-volum...

"Centerview’s chief operating officer chastised the then 21-year-old for even applying for an investment banking job given her requirements for rest." www.ft.com/content/60b3...

New episode of #CalledToTheBar ft @ncl-congov.bsky.social @ruthhoughton.bsky.social & her co-editors @aoifemod.bsky.social & Cher Weixia Chen on their new Research Handbook on Global Governance. soundcloud.com/calledtotheb...

The conference on Unwritten Constitutionalism and Informality, co organised by the UCNP Project and MUNI in Brno is off to a great start! After a very interesting panel on Constitutional Culture we are now reflecting on how the Unwritten Constitution might facilitate Constitutional Resilience.

📣Hello Bluesky! 👋 Me (Holly Smith, new Social Media Editor), @ryanlamare.bsky.social (Editor-In-Chief), & the rest of the #BJIR board are delighted to launch our new socials today! Join us here for all things #industrialrelations - related (is that a hashtag?)

❤️

On #In-WorkPoverty, #UKPoverty2026 reports: "In-work poverty has become a persistent feature of the labour market, with rising numbers of workers unable to achieve a decent standard of living, despite being in employment. The type and quality of work available are critical."

Poverty is deepening. 🔎 Our #UKPoverty2026 report was launched this morning. People in very deep poverty now make up the biggest group of people in poverty, at 6.8 million people. This is unacceptable for the fifth richest country in the world, and it has consequences.

An amazing time at the @collingwooddurham.bsky.social Burns Night formal! Thank you to @thombrooks.bsky.social for the invitation and congratulations to the organisers.

The @leverhulmecal.bsky.social PhD studentships are now live here leverhulmecal.webspace.durham.ac.uk/leverhulme-c... Are you looking for a PhD programme that supports interdisciplinary approaches to algorithmic life? Closing date 26 February

“If ye wish her grateful’ pray’r Gie her a haggis!” Happy #BurnsNight from UofG! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Professor Pauline MacKay, Director of our Centre for Robert Burns Studies, reads from 'To a Haggis'. #TeamUofG #ScotlandIsNow @glasgowburns.bsky.social

My work on Magna Carta, King John, 19th century theatre and a splash of pantomime has been republished in this edited collection www.routledge.com/Shakespeare-...

"When women gain access to decent work, families are lifted out of vulnerability and communities become more resilient." www.ilo.org/resource/art...

On the recent release of the World Bank's second Business Ready report, my assessment of the labour regulation dimension of #B-READY, with Sangheon Lee @ilo.org, is available on @ssrn.bsky.social bit.ly/BRSSRN. Forthcoming in the Modern Law Review. www.worldbank.org/en/businessr...

Looking forward to seeing Durham Choral Society on Saturday 24th January - An Evening with Will Todd. Trailer 👇 www.durhamchoralsociety.org.uk

Father welcomes new parental leave rights for bereaved in Great Britain

In those areas where the Act breaks new ground for UK law, including zero hours contract laws, analysis indicates that the adoption of similar laws in other OECD countries in the recent past has led to productivity and employment improvements.

A new report, commissioned by the Department for Business and Trade, and co-authored by a team of Digit researchers, benchmarks the protection afforded by new UK rights against those across the OECD. www.gov.uk/government/p...

Ladybird Artists Advent Calendar, window 22 Durham Cathedral Artist: SRBadmin

Good memories of the ILERA European Congress. Great to see colleagues from around the world in Durham. Thank you to Barbara Bechter @durham.ac.uk and Rae Cooper @sydney.edu.au for organising, and to Catherine Lemercier and Emilien Blandine for the short film. www.youtube.com/watch?v=slGH...

We believe everyone should be safe, valued and respected at work - no matter our job or nationality. In 2025 workers across Scotland have showed what that looks like in action. Check out our FIRST EVER newsletter to hear more about this work. workersupportcentre.org.uk/2025/12/10/w...

Two new Working Papers from our mixed-methods study Family Finances out now📣 📰 Our first paper looks at the emerging qual & quant findings showing that Scottish Child Payment is making a significant difference to household resources & children's wellbeing 🧵

An evaluation of the World Bank's Business Ready (B-READY) Labor Topic, with Sangheon Lee @ilo.org. Expanded, accepted version, forthcoming in the Modern Law Review. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.... @ssrn.bsky.social