Open position for a researcher to join the new Fairwork team in Ghana

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The Fairwork Ghana team housed within the Department of Operations and Management Information Systems at the University of Ghana Business School is looking for a researcher on digital labour platforms.

This is a full-time fixed-term position starting as soon as possible until June 2022. The remuneration is negotiable between GBP 1300 – GBP 1600 (GHS 9,778.51 – GHS 12,035) per month, depending on experience.

Reporting to the Principal Investigator (PI), Prof. Richard Boateng, the post holder will act as a Researcher on the Fairwork project, assessing digital labour platforms against our principles of fair work and pushing for positive change in the gig economy. The Researcher will be a central figure in Fairwork’s upcoming work in Ghana, and will also work closely with its central team based at the University of Oxford.

About the Researcher

The ideal candidate(s) will have:

A PhD in a relevant degree such as information systems, innovation, sociology, geography, anthropology, economics, development studies, or related fields.
Academic or professional experience, and an established career, related to the gig economy, platform work, the digital economy, decent work, or precarious/temporary work.
Proven experience in conducting empirical qualitative research including semi- and unstructured interviews.
Ability to manage own academic research and associated activities.
Previous experience of contributing to publications/presentations.
Excellent communication skills, including the ability to write for publication, present research proposals and results, and represent the research group at meetings.
Ability to organise complex sets of information and develop granular work schedules.
Experience coordinating a diverse set of stakeholders, especially in Ghana.

Structure and Primary Responsibilities

The Researcher position will involve hands-on field research in Ghana and will have opportunities to co-publish with, and regularly collaborate with, the project’s international body of researchers. Tasks will involve developing fair work standards for the Ghanaian platform economy, conducting research with workers and platforms, organising meetings, managing project outreach, liaising with external partners, stakeholders and funders, disseminating findings in the media, assisting with the supervision of project suppliers, and keeping the project to key deadlines.

The primary responsibilities of this position will be:

Doing primary and secondary research and drawing on our existing research to evaluate platform companies against principles of fair work.
Having operational responsibility for multiple sub-areas of work within the Fairwork Ghana project and giving input to all key decision-making project wide.
Regularly liaising with project stakeholders and funders, and supervising some external project suppliers.
Disseminating and promoting the ‘fair work’ rating criteria in close collaboration with the PI and project team.
Preparation and writing of research publications, chapters, summaries and reports.
Represent the research group at external meetings/seminars, either with other members of the group or alone.

See the application pack in the link below for the full list of requirements and responsibilities.

Duration and Deadline

This is a fixed-term position starting as soon as possible until July 2022.

The remuneration is negotiable between GBP 1300 – GBP 1600 (GHS 9,778.51 – GHS 12,035) per month, depending on experience.

The closing date for applications is 31 January 2021.

To apply, please e-mail the documents listed below in a single pdf file to Richard Boateng at richboateng@ug.edu.gh. Please ensure that the position title is indicated in the subject line of your email.

Cover letter stating your motivation; and
Curriculum Vitae (CV) highlighting specifically your experience relevant to the minimum requirements of the post as specified above and your earliest starting date.
Scanned Copy of the PhD Certificate
List of Publications starting with those relevant to the project

Contact

If you have any questions about this role, please contact Richard Boateng (richboateng@ug.edu.gh).