Work is central to human experience. This program provides a unique and broadly-based interdisciplinary investigation of the historical and contemporary dimensions of the experience of work and the developing terrain of employment in Canada and the globalized world. Students gain an understanding of the rapidly changing world of work through courses on innovative work arrangements, conflict resolution, global labour issues, labour history, collective bargaining, employment law, work-life balance, disabilities studies, occupational health and safety, workplace diversity, and much more. The program encourages students to consider how the arrangements and contexts of work and practices within workplaces can further leverage social inclusion, diversity and the development of the whole person.

The program will appeal to students seeking a broad university education that also imparts job ready skills. Students can take the full four-year BA program, or can choose to take the Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Work & Employment in combination with one of two graduate certificates from Conestoga College: Human Resources Management or Career Development Practitioner. Students pursuing this route take courses for the Conestoga certificate program in their third year of studies in classrooms on the Laurier Brantford campus. In just four years, students following this pathway can earn both a Laurier Honours BA degree and a Conestoga graduate certificate.

The program provides the necessary foundational knowledge for graduates to obtain positions in the employment field – a broad and growing sector in today’s job market – in such areas as career counselling, labour relations, human resources or workplace training, and in private industry, public policy and administration, social services, law, teaching, mediation and dispute resolution, the labour movement, journalism, community development or much more. Our graduates will also be well-positioned to pursue multiple opportunities in graduate education.