Using the lens of social iniquity, this seminar aims to explain that the original construction of welfare states and the current challenges they face today are strongly imbued with socia inequities and to an extent to class conflict. Using case studies related to occupational health problems in France and Germany, students will gain a broad understanding on how the different social systems work and their interaction with European practices and regulations. With the Covid-19 crisis, the link between occupation and health has gained political and social visibility. Unhealthy and unsafe work-environments are unequally distributed in the workforce.
It is mostly workers with low qualifications and low incomes who are the most vulnerable to it. Based on a comparative perspective and at the crossroads of Sociology and Political Science, this course will initiate a reflection to the question of social inequity in relation to occupational health.