British workplaces in the shadow of recession

Britain has entered what is likely to be one of the most severe recessions in living memory. It follows a sustained period of economic growth and its effects will be felt for some time to come. Some of the immediate effects are already apparent in rising unemployment, falling profitability and workplace closure. But what will be the effects on workers and workplaces in the medium-term, and how can we seek to understand them?

This project will answer these questions using nationally representative longitudinal data on employees and their workplaces which will be collected in the 2011 Workplace Employment Relations Survey. The grant will fund researcher involvement in the design of the 2011 surveys of workplaces and employees. It will also fund analyses of cross-sectional and panel data for the period 2004-2011. The analyses will explore the nature of changes in employment relations, workplace practices, worker wellbeing and workplace performance.