Projects

The project aims to investigate and compile a report on men’s responses to diversity interventions and gender equality practices in Nordic workplaces.

The PSYR-IR project zooms in on occupational safety and health, with a particular focus on mental health and worker well-being. It is our aim to identify the broad challenges and issues at play, as well as their underlying drivers, across all EU Member States and all economic sectors. This will be done by implementing an overarching conceptual framework on OSH and linking it with the existing empirical evidence and the policy/regulatory context (e.g. legislation, collective bargaining, etc.) on mental health in EU workplaces. Next to this overall analysis, identifying specific groups at-risk on the EU labour market, we also focus on the mental health of two predetermined target groups: frontline workers (in the female-dominated public health sector) and on-location production workers (low-skilled blue collar workers in the male-dominated private sector). Furthermore, the project will consider the interplay between psychosocial risks and mental health and well-being across economic sectors in the EU27, with separate case studies at the level of the participating EU Member States. Besides identifying challenges and drivers, the project wants to understand what actors can play a role in addressing them, at different levels (EU level, national level, sectoral level, company level) and what policies, practices, tools, actions and initiatives can be or are being adopted. Specific attention will go to the role of the social partners and of social dialogue (collective bargaining), and to worker participation in OSH matters. The project will also identify good examples to inspire policy- and decision-makers at different levels. Methodologically, the project will combine desk research, quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis and dissemination techniques. To do so, we bring together partners with expertise on OSH, industrial relations, or both, from countries in different European regions representing different institutional and industrial relations regimes.

Active mobility is an accessible, healthy and green mode of transport. In the BSR dark winters, with snow and rain, active mobility usage drops. To increase Year-Round Active Mobility (YRAM), suitable infrastructure and equipment must be in place, and citizens need to see it as an attractive and safe option. Public Authorities responsible for urban design, mobility planning and road maintenance do not currently give special consideration for YRAM. Out of tradition, mobility and road planning is still largely focused on cars, and cycling and walking planning typically targets daylight and warmer weather conditions. By learning about the benefits and opportunities through accessing new tools and evidence-based recommendations on YRAM, planners can implement the right interventions to increase AM use all year round, contributing to low carbon mobility systems. BATS supports local and regional authorities to design and implement policies, infrastructures and campaigns that effectively promote Year-Round Active Mobility (walking and cycling in adverse light and weather conditions). Our two solutions will be co-developed and tested in 7 BSR countries and transferred to neighbouring cities and regions. Solution 1: a YRAM Technical Toolkit, helps planners to Diagnose YRAM issues, develop Intervention Strategies and Monitor progress. Solution 2: a Citizen Activation Guide for YRAM helps planners understand and prioritise user groups and deploys effective campaigns to promote AM use.

STP15 "Work Worth Doing? The Value of Platform Work in Estonia" was a short 20-month project aimed at helping a returning scientist establish a thriving research stream and network in Estonia. I am pleased to report that the project has successfully achieved this goal. During its duration, I mentored a master's student who is now continuing as an early-stage (PhD) researcher under my supervision. Together, we are involved in a follow-up grant application in collaboration with the University of Tallinn and the University of Tartu. Consequently, the project continues to progress and, with the support of university co-funding, promises to have long-term impact on the future of sustainable platform work in Estonia. In addition to fostering the development of the next generation of researchers, the project has yielded significant results in terms of publications, dissemination, and follow-up grant applications: (1) Publication of Master's thesis: Toikka, A. (2023). "Worth of Platform-Based Gig Work from the Point of View of Employees and Society." School of Business and Governance, TalTech. (2) Opinion piece in Estonian media: Toikka, A. & Stein, M-K. (2023). "TTÜ Teadlased: Platvormitöötajate Alaväärtustamine Varjutab Ükssarviku Edulugu." Novaator. (English version: Researchers: Undervaluing Platform Workers Tarnishes Unicorn Success Story). (3) Participation in grant application: RITA-PLATV2 2024 "Impacts and Future Directions of Platform Work in Estonia." These outcomes are primarily focused on constructively shaping public discourse around platform work and its participants in Estonia. Given that A. Toikka is continuing this research as a PhD candidate, we have decided to extend our data collection beyond the project's duration to aim for publication in top-tier journals. Preliminary results from the project were presented for feedback at the pre-ECIS (European Conference of Information Systems) Changing Nature of Work workshop (2023) in Kristiansand, Norway.