The Oxford Handbook of the Law of Work

At the core of all societies and economies are human beings deploying their energies and talents in productive activities—that is, at work. The law governing human productive activity is a large part of what determines outcomes in terms of social justice, material wellbeing, and the sustainability of both. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that work is heavily regulated. This book is about the ‘law of work’, a term that includes legislation setting employment standards, collective labour law, workplace discrimination law, the law regulating the contract of employment, and international labour law. It covers the regulation of relations between employer and employee, as well as labour unions, but also discussions on the contested boundaries and efforts to expand the scope of some laws regulating work beyond the traditional boundaries. The book offers a comprehensive review and analysis—theoretical and critical—of the law of work. It includes sixty chapters, divided into four parts: fundamentals (including the historical development of the law of work, why it is needed, the conceptual building blocks, and the unsettled boundaries); core concerns of the law of work (including the contract of employment doctrines, main protections in employment legislation, the regulation of collective relations, discrimination at work, and human rights at work); international and transnational law of work; and overarching themes (including discussion of recent developments such as gig work, online work, artificial intelligence at work, sustainable development, and more).