Jason Foster
Jason Foster is the director of Parkland Institute and a professor of human resources and labour relations at Athabasca University. Jason is the author of Gigs, Hustles, & Temps (2023) and Defying Expectations: The Case of UFCW Local 401 (2018), as well as co-author of Health and Safety in Canadian Workplaces (2016). His research interests include workplace injury, union renewal, labour and employment policy, and migrant workers in Canada. He is committed to sharing research to as broad an audience as possible, so that it might contribute to policy change and making people’s lives better.
Twitter: @ABworkprof
Increasing Employer Power at the Workplace: The Impacts of Bill 32 (Part 2)
blog | Jul 21, 2020Most of the coverage of the tabling of Bill 32 has focused on its effects on unions and unionized workers (including Part One of this post published last week). Yet, the most far-reaching impacts of the bill will be on non-unionized workers – those who are protected only by the Employment Standards Code (ESC).
Taking Aim at Unionized Workers: The Impacts of Bill 32 (Part 1)
blog | Jul 15, 2020Bill 32 will have serious impacts on unionized and non-unionized workers, and it will restrict the voices of workers in our democracy. Jason Foster, Associate Professor, Human Resources and Labour Relations at Athabasca University, explains the implications for unionized workers in the first of a two-part blog series.
In the Shadows: Living and Working Without Status in Alberta
research | Apr 29, 2020This report examines the lives of undocumented migrant workers living in Alberta. It discusses the results of a research study of 32 undocumented workers, outlines the circumstances that led to their loss of status, describes their work and living conditions, and explores their reasons for staying and their hopes for the future.
Cargill, COVID, and the failure of Alberta OHS policy
blog | Apr 24, 2020Two meat-packing plants in southern Alberta have given rise to nearly one in six of Alberta’s 3400 cases of COVID-19. Athabasca University's Bob Barnetson and Jason Foster examine what went wrong at the two meatpacking plants, what it tells us about the inadequacy of OHS policy in Alberta and how the incidents could have been avoided.
Health and safety review is long overdue
blog | Sep 15, 2017The Alberta government is reviewing its Occupational Health and Safety Act for the first time since it was enacted in 1976. Based on the results of a recent worker survey, here are suggestions for changes that can be made to increase worker and workplace safety.
Buried and Forgotten: Newspaper Coverage of Workplace Injury and Death in Alberta
research | Apr 27, 2016Newspapers are one of the main public sources of information about workplace injuries and fatalities, but the analysis in this report suggests Alberta newspaper articles are creating an inaccurate picture of workplace incidents.