Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Spring 2026 - GEOG 328 D100

Labour Geographies (4)

Class Number: 6799

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 5 – Apr 10, 2026: Wed, 9:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Exam Times + Location:

    Apr 17, 2026
    Fri, 11:59–11:59 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Instructor:

    Tahmid Rouf
    Office Hours: Wednesday 12:30-1:30PM

  • Instructor:

    Tahmid Rouf
    trouf@sfu.ca

  • Prerequisites:

    At least 45 units, including GEOG 100 or LBST 101.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

An examination of contemporary debates in Labour Geography, surveying geographical approaches to work and employment. Lectures will explore the relationships between space, place and labour market change in the context of globalization and uneven development. Students with credit for LBST 328 may not take this course for further credit.

COURSE DETAILS:

Course Details:

This course offers a critical exploration of how work, workers, and labour relations are shaped by, and in turn shape, spatial processes of capitalism. Students will investigate the geographies of work, employment, and labour organization across diverse contexts, focusing on how global economic restructuring, uneven development, and technological change produce differentiated labour markets and working lives.

Through case studies, readings, and discussions, the course highlights how workers are active agents in shaping economic spaces, challenging the notion that capital alone drives spatial change. Topics include globalization and labour market flexibilization; gendered and racialized divisions of labour; migration and precarity; urban labour markets; and the spatial politics of collective organizing and resistance.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

Explain key concepts and debates in Labour Geography and their connections to broader theories of economic geography.

Critically analyze how globalization, technological change, and state policies reshape labour markets and working conditions across different spatial scales.

Identify and interpret the spatial dynamics of work, employment, and labour organization in both formal and informal economies.

Evaluate the role of workers and labour movements as spatial actors who negotiate, resist, and reconfigure capitalist geographies.

Apply geographic concepts such as uneven development, place-making, and scale to contemporary issues in work and employment.

Synthesize theoretical and empirical research to discuss case studies of labour struggles, migration, and workplace transformations.

Communicate complex ideas effectively through written, oral, and visual assignments that engage with academic and policy debates about work and space.

Grading

  • Attendance and Participation 20%
  • Assignment 20%
  • Final Project Proposal and Presentation 20%
  • Final Project 40%

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

There are no required textbooks for this course, which draws on articles and book chapters, films and other texts. A complete list of readings will be provided in the full syllabus and through Canvas.


REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.

To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit: 


RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.