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Labour Economics

Code: 100504 ECTS Credits: 6
2025/2026
Degree Type Year
Labour Relations OB 2

Contact

Name:
Manuel Fernando Flores Mallo
Email:
manuel.flores@uab.cat

Teachers

Olga Lucia Manrique Chaparro
Lidia Andrés Delgado
Carme Diaz Corral

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

It has no mandatory prerequisits. It is recommended to have successfully completed the Introduction to Economics course.

The subject will be taught considering the perspective of the Sustainable Development Goals.

 


Objectives and Contextualisation

This course focuses on studying and analyzing the functioning of the labour market and its relationship with institutions and social activities that influence working life.

The subject's main objective is to provide analytical knowledge to students to understand the complexity and social nature of labour market. 
A second objective is to develop cognitive tools to analyze specific labour realities and understand their dynamics. 

Therefore, the objectives of the course are:

1) Understand the basic analytical foundations for the economic study of the labour market and its interaction with other social institutions
2) Learning by working with statistical sources and empirical studies on the labour market
3) Know how to apply knowledge to the debates and analyzes that take place around labour issues
4) Demonstrate the degree of knowledge achieved by carrying out work on specific aspects of the labour market
 

Competences

  • Advising union and business organizations and their members.
  • Applying the information and communication technologies to the different areas of action.
  • Clearly expressing ideas or facts in a compelling way.
  • Connecting the labour market needs, demands, and fluctuations, and the dynamics and policies of the industrial relations.
  • Contextualising the social events from a (geographical, historical, economic, ecological, sociopolitical or cultural) global point of view.
  • Contrasting the equality between men and women in the workplace and solving the issues arisen with the Act on Equality.
  • Distinguishing the special needs of labour integration in different groups of workers (with mental or psychical disabilities, immigrants...).
  • Drawing up and formalising reports and documents.
  • Interpreting data and socioeconomic indicators concerning the labour market.
  • Organising and managing the available time.
  • Producing, implementing and assessing territorial strategies of economic promotion and labour integration.
  • Properly analysing the specific situations of reconciliation of work and family life, and implementing the corresponding regulations.
  • Retain the ethical values and moral standards in decision-making.
  • Students must be aware of the impact and implications of decisions and activities in other company areas.
  • Students must be capable of persuading others to agree with their point of view.
  • Understanding the dynamic and changing character of the labour relations in the national and international field.
  • Verbally communicating and defending a project.
  • Working autonomously.
  • Working effectively in teams.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analysing the economic globalisation in the national and international fields.
  2. Applying the information and communication technologies to the different areas of action.
  3. Assessing and contrasting the segmentation and discrimination in the labour market.
  4. Classifying the general and specific policies of occupation. Assessing the equality between men and women in the labour market.
  5. Classifying the working time regulations.
  6. Clearly expressing ideas or facts in a compelling way.
  7. Defining the equality policies.
  8. Describing the Social Security policies.
  9. Distinguishing the migratory policies.
  10. Drawing up and formalising reports and documents.
  11. Economically analysing the policies of the current working conditions.
  12. Explaining the structure of the labour market
  13. Identifying and distinguishing the policies affecting employment.
  14. Identifying the institutional aspects of the labour market in order to relate the needs, demands and fluctuations of the labour market and their dynamics.
  15. Identifying the position of the Spanish labour market within the context of globalisation.
  16. Knowing the structure of the labour market.
  17. Organising and managing the available time.
  18. Producing and verbally defending written texts of topics related with the previous competences.
  19. Recognising the economic policies of the current working conditions.
  20. Recognising the institutional aspects of the labour market.
  21. Retain the ethical values and moral standards in decision-making.
  22. Solving and debating the policies affecting employment as trade unions and employer's organizations.
  23. Students must be aware of the impact and implications of decisions and activities in other company areas.
  24. Students must be capable of persuading others to agree with their point of view.
  25. Understanding the data concerning employment supply and demand.
  26. Understanding the employment supply and demand.
  27. Understanding the general and specific policies of occupation.
  28. Verbally communicating and defending a project.
  29. Working autonomously.
  30. Working effectively in teams.

Content

The main topics of the course are:

1 ECONOMY, WORK AND LABOUR FORCE

2 MEASURES OF LABOUR ACTIVITY

3 LABOUR MARKET

4  LABOUR SUPPLY

5  LABOUR FORCE AND ITS INFLUENCE ON LABOUR MARKETS

6 LABOUR DEMAND

7 UNEMPLOYMENT

8 LABOUR MARKET SEGMENTATION AND UNIONS

 

 

 

 


Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
SEMINAL LECTURES AND SEMINARS 27.5 1.1 11, 1, 2, 5, 27, 26, 16, 7, 9, 25, 12, 14, 13, 15, 17, 18, 20, 19, 22, 3
Type: Supervised      
ASSIGNMENT WORK 17.5 0.7 11, 1, 2, 21, 28, 16, 24, 25, 12, 6, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 10, 22, 30, 3
Type: Autonomous      
PERSONAL WORK 70 2.8 11, 2, 5, 27, 26, 16, 7, 9, 25, 6, 14, 13, 15, 17, 20, 19, 10, 29
REVISION FOR EXAMS 10 0.4 6, 17, 10, 29
WORKING WITH REFERENCES 20 0.8 1, 21, 27, 28, 16, 24, 25, 6, 14, 18, 19, 10, 23

Statement

Teaching and assessment methods may be submitted to change in case health authorities impose restrictions to access to campus

 

TEACHING METHODOLOGY

The course comprises both seminal lectures and seminars where assignments are done and corrected.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
ASSIGNMENTS 30% 1.5 0.06 11, 21, 5, 26, 28, 16, 7, 9, 12, 6, 14, 13, 15, 19, 10, 22, 30, 3
TWO EXAMS 70% (each 35%) 3.5 0.14 1, 2, 21, 4, 27, 28, 16, 24, 8, 25, 12, 6, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 10, 22, 23, 29

The individual assessment score is the weighted average of:

  • Two exams (35% each)
  • Different activities to be carried out throughout the course (30%)

as long as a grade equal to or greater than 4.0 is achieved in each exam.

An average grade equal to or greater than 5.0 is required to pass.

Students will be evaluable as long as they have carried out a set of activities whose weight is equivalent to a minimum of 2/3 of the total grade for the subject. If the value of the activities carried out does not reach this threshold, the student can be considered as non-evaluable.

 

Fraudulent behaviour

“A student who cheats or tries to cheat in an exam will have a grade of 0 and will lose the right to reassessment.

A student who presents an assignment in which there is evidence of plagiarism or cannot justify the arguments of the assignment will get a 0 and a warning.

In case of reiteration, the student will fail the course”.

Restricted Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technologies: For this course, the use of AI technologies is permitted exclusively for support tasks, such as bibliographic or information searches, proofreading, or translations. Students must clearly identify which parts have been generated using such technology, specify the tools used, and include a critical reflection on how these influenced both the process and the final outcome of the activity. Lack of transparency regarding the use of AI in this assessed activity will be considered academic dishonesty and may result in a partial or total penalty on the grade for the activity, or more severe sanctions in serious cases.

 


Bibliography

Carrasco Bengoa, Cristina i Díaz Corral, Carme (eds.) Economía feminista: desafíos, propuestas, alianzas. Entrepobles: Barcelona, 2017 (ISBN: 9788416828173).

McConnell, C. R., Brue, S.L y Macpherson (2008) Economía Laboral. McGraw-Hill, Madrid.

Recio, A. (1997) Trabajos, personas, mercados. FUHEM, Icaria. Barcelona


Software

The subject does not require any specific software.


Groups and Languages

Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(PAUL) Classroom practices 11 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 12 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 51 Catalan first semester afternoon
(TE) Theory 1 Catalan first semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 51 Catalan first semester afternoon