Restructuring Work and Labour in the New Economy

What is the New Economy? How is it affecting the lives of working Canadians? How have trade unions and the state adapted? Restructuring Work and Labour in the New Economy (RWL-INE) is an alliance of researchers and trade union partners that includes twenty-two scholars from ten Canadian universities working from the perspective of ten disciplines, nine union-based collaborators, and eleven trade union representatives from private and public sector unions and the Ontario and Canadian federations of labour. RWL-INE profiles the new economy from a human perspective, studying the social, political, and economic transformations associated with the new economy, the organizational responses to these changes, and the impact of these responses on the social and cultural experience of work within the Canadian context. Our goal is to direct new knowledge from this research toward changes in work structures and in policy-making in order to improve the quality and conditions of work and community life.

"Our research will allow us to understand institutional responses to change, and this will help to inform union researchers and other policy makers about equity issues related to the way in which jobs have been restructured and how these transformations in the labour market have affected skills, opportunities, access to work, and social citizenship." - Dr. Norene Pupo, Director of the CRWS and Principal Researcher of Restructuring Work and Labour in the New Economy.

This 3-year Research Alliance project involves interdisciplinary scholars from ten universities, and collaborators at eight trade unions. Our researchers are examining the ways in which the structure of work and the labour force in Canada have changed since about 1986. Their studies question the meaning of the "new economy," analyze trends and patterns of change, and examine the ways in which particular structures have been reproduced. One of the key concerns is the effect of change and labour market adjustments on workers and their families’ security and well-being within the context of global economic and political pressures. Learn more about our 28 research projects. Dr. Norene Pupo, Principal Investigator Dahpne Paszterko or Sean Cain Project Coordinators Centre for Research on Work and Society 276 York Lanes, York University 4700 Keele St., Toronto, Ontario M3J 1P3 416-736-2100, ext. 70494

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