Labour, Technology and Public Policy Lab

Bringing together researchers working at the intersections of work, technology and public policy.

Discover our research
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Addressing real world challenges

The Lab is dedicated to fostering collaborative research partnerships with government and industry partners and community organisations to explore how digital platforms, artificial intelligence, automation and migration are reshaping work and labour markets.

Core research areas

By working across sectors, we generate rigorous, policy relevant evidence on how artificial intelligence, digital platforms, automation and other emerging technologies are reshaping work, labour markets and public institutions. Our research provides actionable insights to inform inclusive labour policies, effective regulation and governance frameworks that promote equitable, sustainable and socially beneficial technological futures.

Automation and technology

Covering future workplace outcomes and technology approaches

Labour rights and social policy

Covering migration and precarious work, labour, politics and social policy

Work, care and wellbeing

Covering future of work, gender and care

Research case studies

Global value chains and politics of social policy and social reproduction

Lead researchers

Kanishka Jayasuriyav

Kanishka Jayasuriyav

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Conflict over access to the means of social reproduction – the process of life-making – has become a central feature of political contestation over social policy.

Project summary

In this project we examine how contestations over social reproduction are connected to broader transformations in the global political economy and the consolidation of global value chains such as in the areas of electronics. relationship to the global economy.

We ask: how are contestations over social policy shaped by transformations in global capitalism? How does state intervention, aimed simultaneously at supporting capitalist accumulation and managing social reproduction, contribute to the reproduction of capitalist relationships?  The initial focus of this project is on contestation over social policy in Vietnam.

External researchers

Tu Nguyen

Lead researchers

Kanishka Jayasuriyav
Kanishka Jayasuriyav
View staff profile

Lead researchers

Kanishka Jayasuriyav

Kanishka Jayasuriyav

View staff profile

Our people

Directors

Dr Lutfun Nahar Lata

Dr Lutfun Nahar Lata

Lab Director
Kanishka Jayasuriya

Professor Kanishka Jayasuriya

Deputy Director

Academic members

Associate researchers

PhD & research students

Read about our research students and their theses.

From Access to Advancement: Exploring Women's Career Trajectories within Bangladesh's Digitally Transforming Banking Sector

Naiyer Fatema Khanom’s research focuses on digital transformation at work and gender equality. Naiyer has worked in the Asia region for access to finance and women’s economic empowerment projects. Her volunteer involvement includes working with Transparency International, Grameen Bank, GovHack Australia and other organisations to promote quality education for girls, youth employment, entrepreneurship ecosystems, ICT literacy, green financing and green jobs for sustainable development. She has also worked as a director for the Adelaide chapter of the Founder Institute and is a co-founder of WISECAR PTY LTD, a technology-based start-up.

Virtualising Australia’s Public Employment Service through a Digital Dashboard: The Experiences of Australian CALD Jobseekers

Mohammad Faisal's research focuses on the integration of digital technologies into public services, examining the opportunities and challenges from the perspectives of diverse stakeholders. His work explores the personal, procedural, institutional, and socio-economic dimensions of digital transformation, with particular attention to user experiences and public perceptions. A central focus of his research is understanding how automated decision-making systems shape public values and influence trust, well-being, and social outcomes in digital governance. He investigates the implications of these technologies for values such as privacy, autonomy, integrity, solidarity, and equity, while critically examining how digital innovation can promote or undermine social equality and inclusion.

Developing a holistic PESTLE-based model for the factors that drive the implementation of synergistic energy solutions in Australia

Maryam's research focuses on sustainable energy transitions, environmental policy and innovation in the energy sector. Her research examines the complex political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental (PESTLE) factors that shape the implementation of renewable energy solutions. She has developed a holistic PESTLE-based framework to improve understanding of the key drivers, barriers and enabling conditions underpinning the transition to renewable energy in Australia. Her research aims to support evidence-based policy and decision-making for more sustainable and resilient energy systems.

Understanding Accessibility and Inclusion in Urban Bhutan: Lived Experiences of Wheelchair Users

Dechen's research focuses on accessibility and social inclusion in urban Bhutan, with particular emphasis on the lived experiences of wheelchair users. Her research examines how the built environment, transport infrastructure, public services and social attitudes shape the everyday mobility, participation, and well-being of people with physical disabilities. By exploring the barriers and enablers to inclusion, her work seeks to inform more accessible urban planning, inclusive public policy, and equitable approaches to disability inclusion in Bhutan.

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Contact us

Labour, Technology and Public Policy Lab

Email 
Dr Lutfun Nahar Lata: Lutfun.Lata@murdoch.edu.au