The Work Foundation Research Fellows are leading Lancaster University academics who play a crucial role in shaping our research programme and contribute to specific projects that align closely with their expertise. They author and co-author thought leadership pieces and articles, and speak at Work Foundation events. These Fellows are share a keen interest and expertise in the evolving nature of work.
Our Research Fellows
Professor Stavroula Leka
Stravroula Leka is Professor of Organisations, Work & Health and Director of the Centre for Organisational Health & Well-Being at Lancaster University.
She is a Chartered Psychologist, Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society and Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and the Higher Education Academy.
Her research interests include work organisation and the promotion of healthy workplaces through the management of risks to the physical and mental health of workforces. Her research has been translated into guidance and international standards for several organisations.
Stavroula has worked as an expert advisor to the European Commission, the World Health Organisation, the International Labour Organization, the International Standardisation Organisation, the European Agency for Safety & Health at Work, the European Parliament, and the UK Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on the provision of national-level occupational health programmes.
As a member of the Board of the International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH), President of the European Academy of Occupational Health Psychology (EAOHP) and Honorary Fellow of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine in Ireland, Stavroula is a highly regarded leader in occupational health research internationally. She is on the editorial boards of three international journals and is the Associate Editor of the journal Safety Science.
Dr Ou Lin
Ou Lin joined the Lancaster Law School as a Lecturer in Employment Law in September 2023. Her research interests lie in the field of employment law. Her expertise include the regulation of platform work and other precarious employment relations. In addition to doctrinal analysis of the law, she embraces socio-legal methods to observe the interactions between law and real world working practices.
Ou holds a PhD in Law from the University of Glasgow in July 2023, supported by scholarship from the European Research Council as part of their ‘Work On Demand project (2018-2023), investigating the evolving nature of contracts relating to casual, ‘zero-hours’, and self-employed workers in the gig economy.
Ou's doctoral thesis examines 'Workers' Spontaneous Struggles and Resistance in the Chinese On-Demand Economy'. It draws on initial insights gained from her role as the Principal Investigator for the research project 'Empirical Research and Legal Solutions for On-Demand Work', funded by the Chinese Ministry of Education.
Prior to moving to the UK, Ou graduated with a PhD in Law and Economics from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics. She worked as a Lecturer in Law in China and passed the Chinese National Judicial Examination. Ou also taught Employment Law and Labour Law at the University of Glasgow and the University of Strathclyde.