Fall 2016 - LBST 301W D100
Labour Movements: Contemporary Issues and Images (3)
Class Number: 5293
Delivery Method: In Person
Overview
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Course Times + Location:
Sep 6 – Dec 5, 2016: Mon, 2:30–5:20 p.m.
Burnaby
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Instructor:
Simon Chilvers
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Prerequisites:
Recommended: LBST 101.
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
This course will give students a comprehensive understanding of the contemporary structure, issues, and perceptions of labour unions and other forms of working-class organization. It will focus on external and internal problems that the labour movement faces, such as labour law and state policy, employer strategies, bureaucracy, racism and sexism. The treatment of labour in the media and popular culture will provide an understanding of how labour is viewed in society, how labour views itself, and how working-class culture informs and is informed by the larger culture. Students with credit for LBST 301 may not take this course for further credit. Writing.
COURSE DETAILS:
This course introduces the major issues, socio-economic structures, and perceptions that concern unions and other working-class organisations today. It focuses on the problems that are faced by the labour movement, including economism, bureaucratisation, electoral opportunism, racism, sexism, state/employer strategies, and repressive laws. Especial attention is paid to how labour is portrayed in popular culture, how the labour movement engages with these representations, and how 'working-class' values relate to the interests of dominant classes.
COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:
Students completing this course will have an enhanced understanding of the broad challenges facing the labour movement, plus many specific economic, political, and ideological issues that affect working class lives in Canada today. Students also will be able to critically engage with a variety of scholarly and activist perspectives on the tactics and strategies of exploiting and exploited classes in their mutually constituted struggles.
Grading
- Participation: 10%
- Course Diary: 15%
- Fieldtrip Report: 15%
- Book Review: 15%
- Research Essay Proposal: 10%
- Research Essay: 35%
NOTES:
LBST 301W has an optional fieldtrip & related assignment that may require travel by vehicle, public transit, or foot during the scheduled class hours. Students that do not wish to participate in the fieldtrip will be provided with an alternative assignment. Further details can be obtained from the instructor.
REQUIREMENTS:
In addition to the written assignments, students are expected to complete the weekly readings, regularly attend seminars, and participate in classroom discussions.
Materials
RECOMMENDED READING:
Ross, S., Savage, L., eds. 2012. Rethinking the Politics of Labour in Canada. Halifax: Fernwood.
(Available in the library. Many of the other syllabus readings are accessible via Canvas.)
Registrar Notes:
SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://students.sfu.ca/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.
Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS