McBride, M L (2003) Bunkhouses, black flies, and seasonal unemployment: The industrial construction industry in Newfoundland, 1960s–1990s. PhD thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada.
Abstract
The aim of this study was to explore the interrelationship between economic development and the impact of industrialization on Newfoundland's construction workers. My starting assumption was that the economic and political had a strong impact on the social. A qualitative case study methodology was used wherein three mega-projects were subjected to examinations to determine what impact the quest for economic development and its resulting industrialization had on workers. A combination of archival research, newspaper and other documentary research was backed up by interviews of key informants, particularly in the third case study. The empirical work focused on explaining the structure of Newfoundland's economy and the impact of the complex intertwinings of the social, political and economic environment on Newfoundland workers. The key structural dynamics to understanding the impacts of economic development were found to be the degree and effectiveness of employer support for good labour relations (which often played out in initial support for a union site), the state of the economy, and the role of the government in the project. As the case studies demonstrate, structural properties of class and gender were crucial to understanding the ways in which economic development influenced workers and workplaces. This study is also one of the first to provide an intimate portrait of the life of construction workers in Newfoundland. Examining the daily life on three different construction projects allows the study to determine change over time; and also provides a lens through which we can examine gender relations, occupational health and safety, and labour relations on the projects. This thesis, in providing a theoretically informed discussion of detailed case study material, contributes towards the debate on the role of the government in economic development. Because two of three case studies were legislated within a new set of legal parametres, by special collective bargaining provisions as special projects, the study may also aid our understanding of the relationship between economic development, collective bargaining and the role of the government. It also informs the debate on the role of workers/unions and employers in fostering better labour relations.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Kealey, G S |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | archival research; case studies; case study; economic development; employer; gender; government; health and safety; industrialization; labour relations; occupational health and safety; safety; unemployment |
| Index terms: | construction project, methodology, unemployment, health and safety, economic development, interview, industrialization, occupational health and safety, effectiveness, dynamics, bargaining, labour relation, construction worker, industrial construction, archival research, case study, newspaper |
| Subjects: | research design and methodology, data collection methods, sociology, occupational health and safety management, systems engineering, performance management, economics, economic analysis, practitioner, building construction, research methods, economic development, production management, health safety and environment |
| Topics: | Sustainability, Engineering Principles, Project Management, Health and Safety, Supply Chain Management, Quality Management, Roles and Professions, Research Practice, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here