Employment Relations as Networks: Methods and Theory

This volume provides a seminal starting point for a paradigm shift in the field of employment relations by applying theories and methodologies from social network analysis to the study of employment relations.

Bernd Brandl is Professor at Durham University Business School. In his research he is dealing with methodological, empirical and theoretical research questions in the fields of employment relations and international HRM. In particular, much of his thematic and theoretical research focused on comparative cross-country analyses of different employment relations and labour market systems, institutions and policies. Professor Brandl is also engaging in policy making debates and worked as an advisor/expert for international organizations such as the European Commission and the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Bengt Larsson is a professor of sociology at Linnaeus University and University of Gothenburg in Sweden. His research focuses on industrial relations and transnational trade union cooperation. Larsson has published several papers in journals such as European Journal of Industrial Relations, British Journal of Industrial relations, Economic and Industrial Democracy, and Industrial Relations Journal. Together with Professor Bengt Furåker, Larsson recently published a book entitled Trade Union Cooperation in Europe: Patterns, Conditions, Issues (Palgrave Pivot, 2020).

Alex Lehr is an assistant professor in empirical political science at Radboud University. His research is at the intersection of sociology, economics and political science, and focuses on economic inequality, employment relations and labour market representation. He specializes in the development and synthesis of micro-level theories, and the collection and statistical analyses of novel micro-level data, e.g., via surveys and experiments. Lehr has published papers in journals such as Work, Employment and Society, Economic and Industrial Democracy, Employee Relations, Journal of Behavioural and Experimental Economics, and Rationality and Society.

Oscar Molina is associate professor at the Department of Sociology and researcher at Centre d’Estudis Sociològics QUIT - Institute for Labour Studies, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. He holds a degree in Economics (Pompeu Fabra University) and a PhD in Social and Political Science at the European University Institute (EUI-Florence). He has been post-doctoral researcher at the Industrial Relations and Human Resources Group, University College Dublin (2005-2007) and ICREA Researcher at QUIT, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, and currently coordinator of Eurofound’s national correspondent team in Spain. His main research interests include comparative industrial relations, labour market policies, neo-corporatism.