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// Issue 36

Continued innovation in research methods

By Giorgos Gouzoulis, Vanessa Beck and Blandine Emilien and Christopher Pesterfield

Issue 36 // 8th July 2026

This special issue argues that improving and innovating research methods is essential for producing more accurate, ethical, and meaningful evidence about the experiences of vulnerable workers and shaping the future of work. Read more of the article

Multiple job holding: a critical quantitative methodology

By Darja Reuschke and Tracey Warren

Issue 36 // 8th July 2026

Multiple job holding is far more common than official statistics suggest, and better definitions and administrative data are needed to accurately understand who works multiple jobs and why. Read more of the article

Innovative methods, familiar blind spots

By Jennifer Whillans

Issue 36 // 8th July 2026

Improved data alone cannot reveal when women work unless research methods and assumptions stop treating men's work patterns as the default and analyse women's experiences on their own terms. Read more of the article

From rates to risk: How machine learning can reveal the workers official statistics cannot see

By Luis D. Torres

Issue 36 // 8th July 2026

Linked data and machine learning can shift labour market analysis from retrospectively measuring unemployment to proactively identifying workers at risk, provided these tools are governed ethically and combined with qualitative research. Read more of the article

Modern slavery and knowledge production: Lived experience as expertise

By Christopher Pesterfield and Brandon Thomas

Issue 36 // 8th July 2026

Although UK modern slavery policy now calls for involving people with lived experience, it leaves major ethical and practical gaps, raising difficult questions about how to do this meaningfully without causing harm or exploitation. Read more of the article

Story completion: A novel, creative method for exploring perceptions and understandings of work and employment-related phenomena

By Victoria Clarke, Kara Daly and Gemma Pike and Vanessa Beck

Issue 36 // 8th July 2026

Story completion is a qualitative method where participants write fictional narratives in response to a researcher-designed prompt, enabling exploration of social meanings and perceptions—especially around sensitive topics—without relying on direct self-report. Read more of the article