SOCIOLOGY 4V03

Issues in the Sociology of Occupations and Professions:

Precarious Employment and Vulnerable Workers

Winter2017Instructor: Lisa Kaida

Day and Time of Classes: Mon, 8:30-11:20amExt.: 23601

Class Location: KTH-B107Office Hours: Mon, 11:30am-1pm

Office: KTH-613Email:

(Please expect a reply from me within 3 business days. Be sure to include ‘Sociology4V03’ in the e-mail subject header to facilitate a timely response.)

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course focuses on key changes in the world of work in developed countries since the 1970s. We will first overview the main concepts of precarious employment. Second, we will study various cases of precarious employment with a focus on specific employment relationships (e.g. temporary help agency jobs, home-based work), industries (e.g. agriculture, hospitality), and vulnerable groups (e.g. im/migrants, women in rural areas). Third, we will explore three factors known to contribute to the rise in precarious employment: the flexible firms; economic restructuring; and neoliberal policy. Finally, we will consider recent movements to make employment less precarious.

COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

This course addresses five University Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations (

1)It will introduceyou to contemporary issues surrounding workers in developed countries and sociological approaches to precarious employment, which will expand your depth and breadth of knowledge.

2)You will learn to critically assess the literature on precarious employment and applysociological conceptual frameworks to case studies of precarious employment in writing and in-class oral presentations. This will help you gain application of knowledge and communication skills.

3)Through written assignments and in-class discussions, you will identify gaps in existing sociological research on the contemporary world of work, which will help you gain an awareness of limits of knowledge.

4)You will develop your own arguments regarding contemporary issues surrounding workers, which will enhance yourautonomy and professional capacity.

Topics and Schedules

Group 1 / Group 2 / Group 3
January / 9(wk1) / Introduction
16 (wk2) / Historical and international perspectives on precarious employment
23 (wk3) / The employment relationship and “bad jobs”
30 (wk4) / Temporary employment / Presentation 1
February / 6 (wk5) / Gender and home-based work (telework) / 1stpaper due / Presentation 1
13 (wk6) / Precarious industries: Farm work and hospitality industry / 1stpaper due / Presentation 1
20 / No class (mid-term break)
27 (wk7) / Flexible firms in the age of global economy / Presentation 2 / 1stpaper due
March / 6 (wk8) / Economic restructuring and its impact on women’s work / 2ndpaper due / Presentation 2
13 (wk9) / Migration policy in the age of neoliberalism / 2ndpaper due / Presentation 2
20 (wk10) / Re-regulating employment / Presentation 3 / 2ndpaper due
27 (wk11) / Trade union renewal & community unionism / Presentation 3
April / 3 (wk12) / Worker ownership & industrial democracy / Presentation 3
10 / Final paper due

Other important dates, Winter 2017

January 12 (Thurs): Last day for enrollment (registration) and changes

March 10 (Fri): Last day for cancelling courses without failure by default

Note: This is not the complete list – for other important dates, please go to:

METHOD OF EVALUATION

Grade Breakdown:

1. Paper
Assignment 1 (1stpaper + presentation) / 10%
Assignment 2 (2ndpaper + presentation) / 20%
Assignment 3 (final paper + presentation) / 30%
2. Exam Questions / 15% (=5% * 3 questions)
3. In-class essays (2 essays, Dates: TBA) / 10% (=5% * 2 essays)
4. Class participation / 15%
100%

1. Paper:

This is the main requirement of this course. The goal is to write a critical review focusing on a specific topic of precarious employment that has been studied by sociologists over the past 25 years. You must choose one of the three broad topics:1) temporary employment; 2) telework/home-based work; and 3) precarious industries (hotel/farm work). The paper must address the following three broad questions: 1) In what ways is this type of work precarious? Who are more vulnerable to this type of work? (describing precariousness of work); 2) Why has this type of work become increasingly precarious since the 1970s? (causes of precariousness); and 3) What can be done to make this type of work less precarious? (solutions to mitigate precariousness) The paper will be completed in three stages throughout the course.

You are asked to rank the aforementioned 3 topics in your preferred order and email your ranked list to me by 5pm, January 15 (Sun). Based on thesubmitted ranking, I will assign one specific topic to you by January 16 (Mon).

a)Assignment 1 (1stpaper + presentation): Understanding precarious work

  • In the first paper, you are asked to describe precariousness of the type of work of your choice and discuss the relationship between the social location of the workers and their experience at workplace. In other words, this paper must address the following questions: 1) How precarious is this type of work? In what ways?; and 2) How do the workers’ class, gender, race/ethnicity (and/or other social locations such as immigrant status, age, region of residence) influence their experience at work?
  • You must citeat least 2 assigned readings for the topic of your choice, as well as at least 3 other sociology works on this topic. For example, if you are assigned the topic of temporary employment, you must cite at least 2 of the 3 required readings for Week 4. You may use the articles in “optional readings” and/or other academic sociology works you have found on Sociological Abstracts as “the 3 other works.”
  • Please do not review the articles (or books, book chapters) one by one. Instead, synthesize them along common topics, debates, issues, etc.
  • The paper must be 5-7 pages (double spaced) and include references.
  • Based on your 1stpaper, you are also required to present a summary of your paper in class. The presentation should be under 12 minutes, with 5 or less PowerPoint or other presentation software slides or hand-outs.
  • If you are unable to attend class on the day of your presentation for any reason, your 1stassignment will be graded solely based on your 1stpaper.
  • The first paper is due one week after the presentation. For example, if you are assigned a topic of temporary employment and presented a summary of your 1stpaper on January 30 (Mon), your 1stpaper is due one week later, February 6 (Mon) at 9:00am.Please upload your work to Avenue (Dropbox) AND submit a hard-copy to me in person in the beginning of class. The deadline is fixed and non-negotiable.

b)Assignment 2 (2ndpaper + presentation): Analyzing causes of precarious work

  • The 2ndpaper builds on the 1stpaper. In addition to what you did in the 1stpaper, you also must discuss factors that you think are contributing to the growth of precariousness of the type of work of your choice. In other words, the 2ndpaperadditionally should address the second main questions: Why has this type of work become increasingly precarious since the 1970s? What are the structural factors contributing to the rise in precariousness of this type of work?
  • You must use at least 2 assigned readings for the topic of your choice, as well as at least 3 other works on this topic. For example, if you are assigned the topic of temporary employment, you must cite at least 2 of the 3 required readings for Week 7. You can use the articles in “optional readings” and/or other academic sociology works found on Sociological Abstracts as “the 3 other works.”
  • The paper must be 10-12 pages (double spaced) and include references.
  • Higher grading standard will be applied to the 2ndpaper than for the 1stpaper.
  • Based on your 2nd paper, you are also required to present a summary of your work (only the “causes” part) in class. The presentation should be under 12 minutes, with 5 or less PowerPoint or other presentation software slides or hand-outs.
  • The 2nd paper is due one week after the presentation. For example, if you are assigned the topic of temporary employment and presented a summary of your 2ndpaper on February 27 (Mon), your 2ndpaper is due a week later, March 6 (Mon) at 9am. Please upload your work to Avenue (Dropbox)AND submit a hard-copy to me in person in the beginning of class. The deadline is fixed and non-negotiable.

c)Assignment 3 (final paper + presentation): Proposing solutions to precarious employment

  • The final paper builds on the 1stand 2ndpapers. In addition to what you did in the 1st and 2ndpaper, you also must discuss solutions to make the type of work of your choice less precarious. In other words, the final paper additionally addresses the third main question: What can be done to make this type of work less precarious?
  • You must cite at least 2 assigned readings for the topic of your choice, as well as at least 3 other sociology works. For example, if you are assigned the topic of temporary employment, you must cite at least 2 of the 3 required readings for Week 10. You can use the articles in “optional readings” and/or other academic sociology works found on Sociological Abstracts as “the 3 other works.” You are encouraged to use the readingsfor the other 2 weeks from Part 4 so you can discuss multiple solutions to precarious employment.
  • The paper must be 15-18 pages(double spaced)and include references.
  • Higher grading standard will be applied to the final paper than the 2ndpaper.
  • Based on your final paper, you are also required to present a summary of the paper (only the “solution” part) in class. The presentation should be under 12 minutes, with 5 or less PowerPoint or other presentation software slides or hand-outs.
  • The final paper is due on April 10 (Mon), 5pm for everyone. Please upload your work to Avenue (Dropbox). The deadline is fixed and non-negotiable.

2. Exam Questions

  • You are asked to submit an exam question based on the required readings for a specific week. You must choose 3 weeks from the 9weeksfrom Weeks 4-12, excluding the 3weeksin which you are presenting in class. For example, if you are assigned a topic of temporary employment and asked to present in Weeks 4, 7, and 10, you may choose 3 weeksfrom the remaining 6 weeks - Weeks 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, and 12.
  • An exam question should be broad enough to entail all the readings for a specific week. You can also address a broader question that extends to the topics covered in previous weeks. In addition to addressing a question, you also must prepare your own answer, which will be shared with other students in class.
  • You are required to upload your question (in Word or pdf format) on Avenue (Dropbox) by 5pm Friday before the class. This deadline is fixed and non-negotiable. I will not accept any late submission. If you have missed the deadline, try to submit an exam question for another week.
  • All students are expected to review the posted questions before coming to class and to come up with their own answers.
  • Think of this assignment as a practice to answer a long-essay question in a fourth-year level undergraduate exam.

3. In-class essays

You are asked to read a newspaper article or watch a news report related to course material and write 1-2 page essays on the material. The essays must be submitted to me at the end of class. Further details of this assignmentwill be provided later.

4. Class Participation

  • Questions and discussions contribute to the understanding of the course material. Informed class participation in the form of questions and comments will be taken into consideration in the figuring of your participation mark.
  • Attendance to class is also considered as class participation (1% per class up to 10% maximum). I will take attendance in the beginning of class, starting in Week 2.
  • You are also asked to assessother students’presentations (Weeks 4-12) using a short evaluation form. Submissions of the evaluation forms will be counted toward your class participation, and your evaluation form will be given to the presenter (with your name removed) so they can improve their performance in the next presentation (if any).

OTHER COURSE-RELATED ITEMS:

Class format:

The course consists of a mix of my lectures and your presentations/discussions. For the first three weeks, I will mainly lecture to provide an overview of the sociology of precarious employment. You are more than welcome to ask questions and/or comment on my lecture topics during the class.

From Week 4 to 12, you are expected to take the initiative in leading the class, given that this is a seminar course. In each class, students who are assigned to write a paper on the topic of the week give 12-minute presentations. I will then open the floor so other students can comment on their presentations. Students who have submitted an exam question are also asked to address their question then.

In consideration of students with limited knowledge in the sociology of work, I will deliver a brief lecture (10-15 min) on a topic that will be covered in the next week, starting in Week 3.For example, toward the end of Week 3 class, I will provide a brief overview of the sociological research ontemporary employment, the topic of Week 4. My lectures may help you situate each assigned reading in a broad context and write a concise paper (if assigned) or ask an insightful exam question.

Office Hours and Appointments: I encourage you to visit my office to discuss matters of concern. If you cannot make it during the regularoffice hours(Mon,11:30am-1:00pm), please let me know so we can arrange an appointment.

Late Policy:

Assignments are due when specified on the course outline above. No extensions will be granted except in the case of a documented medical issue or emergency. If anassignment is submitted late, 5% for each 24 hour period following the deadline with be deducted, with no prorating over the 24 hour period. For example, if you receive 65% on the assignment, but turn in the paper in 6 hours late, you will lose 5%, or receive a grade of 60%. Weekends count as days late.

Grade Appeals:

  • Every effort will be made to provide you with a grade that honestly reflects the quality of your work. Read carefully the comments provided on the returned assignment. Also consider the criteria on which the grading was based. Marks depend not on surface comprehension of the material but deep comprehension; in the writing assignments, marks depend on critical and original analysis of the material, and clear and concise organization, presentation and writing with no irrelevant material. You are also assessed on spelling, grammar, and punctuation at a 4th-year undergraduate level.
  • If, after having read the comments, listened to the review and reread your work, you believe the grade does not adequately reflect the quality of your work, return the assignment to me with short, specific, written comments arguing for the quality of your work. You must use the designated form, which is available upon request. The request form must be submitted to me in person within 2 weeks of the assignment being returned to the class. Re-marked assignment can be graded up or down.

Use of Avenue:

Announcement: Occasionally, I will make announcements and post course-related files on Avenue. To avoid missing important announcements, you are asked to have valid accounts for the Avenue and to log on to my course web page at least twice a week.

Assignment submission: You are asked to submit your Assignments 1 and 2by handing in a hard copy to me in class AND uploading your file (in Word or pdf format) to Avenue’s Dropbox. For Assignment 3, you are required to submit your work to Dropbox only.

Course Grades:

Course grades are calculated on the basis of a percentage scale. The weighted sum at the end of the course is then translated into the letter grade used by McMaster as follows (

Grade / Equivalent Grade Point / Equivalent Percentages
A+ / 12 / 90-100
A / 11 / 85-89
A- / 10 / 80-84
B+ / 9 / 77-79
B / 8 / 73-76
B- / 7 / 70-72
C+ / 6 / 67-69
C / 5 / 63-66
C- / 4 / 60-62
D+ / 3 / 57-59
D / 2 / 53-56
D- / 1 / 50-52
F / 0 / 0-49 -- Failure

Inclusion and Equity: This course brings together students from a variety of academic disciplines, as well as ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Learning from our diversity of experience, values and world views is a strength of the university experience. For all students to get the most from this course, dialogue should be respectful across disciplinary, cultural and personal differences.

Students with Disabilities: Students with diverse learning styles and needs are welcome in this course. If you have a disability or health consideration that may require accommodations, please approach me as soon as possible. The sooner you let us know your needs, the quicker we can assist you in achieving your learning goals in this course.

Classroom Policies:

  • I will not tolerate discourtesy or disruptions of any kind during lectures.
  • Late arrivals and early departures are disruptive and are thus not acceptable.
  • In consideration of your colleagues, please turn off cell/smart phones during class time.

Campus Support

  • Student Academic Success Centre, writing support services
  • Student Wellness Centre, counselling services
  • Mac Library

ACADEMIC DISHONESTY:

Academic dishonesty consists of misrepresentation by deception or by other fraudulent means and can result in serious consequences, e.g. the grade of zero on an assignment, loss of credit with a notation on the transcript (notation reads: "Grade of F assigned for academic dishonesty"), and/or suspension or expulsion from the university.

It is your responsibility to understand what constitutes academic dishonesty. For information on the various kinds of academic dishonesty please refer to the Academic Integrity Policy, specifically Appendix 3, located at

The following illustrates only three forms of academic dishonesty

1. Plagiarism, e.g. the submission of work that is not one's own or for which other credit has been obtained.

2. Improper collaboration in group work.

3. Copying or using unauthorized aids in tests and examinations.

Turnitin.com

In this course, we will be using a web-based service (Turnitin.com) to reveal plagiarism. Youwill be required to submit your work electronically (Dropbox within Avenue) so that it can be checked for academic dishonesty. To see the Turnitin.com Policy, please go to

DEPARTMENTAL/UNIVERSITY POLICIES:

Do NOT fax assignments. Please see your instructor for the most appropriate way to submit assignments.

The Sociology staff do NOT date-stamp assignments, nor do they monitor the submission or return of papers.

The McMaster Student Absence Form ( is a self reporting tool for Undergraduate Students to report absences that last up to 3 days and provides the ability to request accommodation for any missed academic work. Please note, this tool cannot be used during any final examination period.

You may submit a maximum of 1 Academic Work Missed request per term. It is YOUR responsibility to follow up with your instructor immediately regarding the nature of the accommodation.