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Mental health in context: The role of precarious and insecure work 

On the Futures of Work blog, Annie Irvine asks whether a focus on mental health as a cause of economic inactivity is too narrow. We need a more holistic approach to assessing capacity for work which considers broader social and structural factors. Read more of the article

A place-based approach to fair pay and secure working hours 

On the Futures of Work blog, Ellie Farmahan describes the success of Living Wage UK in putting £3 billion into the pockets of workers over the last 20 years, and what still needs to be done to ensure more workers have security and enough to live on. Read more of the article

Regional development priorities for the government after the 2024 General Election 

On the Futures of Work blog, Martin Quinn argues that place matters in regional development priorities if interventions are to be effective in growing work opportunities outside London. Read more of the article

A pro-worker Labour government must scrap the ‘any jobs’ approach to welfare policy 

On the Futures of Work blog, Katy Jones highlights how the existing ‘any jobs’ approach to welfare taken by successive governments pushes people into poor-quality work which they then often struggle to get out of. Read more of the article

The New Deal for Working People: The labour interest in the national interest?

Frederick Harry Pitts shows that policies like the New Deal for Working People and their potential for accelerated rollout offer Labour a chance to campaign effectively, turning narrow marginal wins into secure Labour seats for a second term. Read more of the article

ISSUE 27: Editorial

As the public sector and welfare state continue to contract, the latest issue of the Futures of Work blog explores how processes of economic deregulation have impacted working conditions over the last decades. Read more of the article

Exploiting the exploiters: Rethinking labour strategies in the era of Global Value Chains

Takis Iliopoulos considers how local suppliers, even in countries with low wages and labour standards, can wield power from their critical position in global supply chains. Read more of the article

Austerity-driven policification: Police officers replace teaching assistants

Malte Laub considers the effect of austerity on the role of the police, who are now having to act as teaching assistants and mental health support workers, and pick up the pieces of a failed welfare state. Read more of the article

Why employees in finance are paid (a lot) more than everyone else and what does it mean for workers’ politics?

Iris Nikolopoulou analyses how the increasing influence of the financial sector has generated distinct paths in terms of working conditions between workers employed by private financial institutions and the rest of the economy. Read more of the article

How the rising influence of institutional investors undermines the bargaining power of trade unions

Thibault Darcillon and Yasmine Mohamed look at the link between the rise of institutional investors and the decreasing power of trade unions, and their consequent bargaining power. Read more of the article