Dr Sarah Gregson

Dr Sarah Gregson

Senior Lecturer
Business School
School of Management and Governance

Sarah is a labour historian who has taught in the School of Management and Governance since 1995. Her research spans diverse subjects related to the world of work and safety – the social history of the Titanic sinking, aircraft maintenance engineering work, supply chain safety, and the memorialisation of labour. Her latest project is about the West Gate bridge disaster. This project examines the bridge’s collapse during construction, with a focus on the history of the disaster, its place in labour memory, philanthropic approaches to victims and families, and its lessons for ongoing action for better workplace health and safety. She practices what she teaches as president of the NTEU UNSW branch.

Research Grants
  • 2011-2013: The future of aircraft maintenance in Australia: workforce capability, aviation safety and industry development (with Michael Quinlan, Ian Hampson, Anne Junor, Ann Williamson, Garry Barrett and Erik van Voorthuysen). 2011 $75,000, 2012 $71,000, 2013 $80,000

Research Interests

  • Labour process and aircraft maintenance work
  • Diversity management and discrimination
  • Australian labour history-1890s - 1930s
  • Australian conservatism
  • Social history of the Titanic sinking

 

 

Phone
+61 2 9385 7151
Location
Room 505, UNSW Business School Building
  • Books | 2020
    Sheldon P; Gregson S; Irving T; Belzer M; Thornquist A; Lippel K; Thebaud-Mony A; Nossar I; Walters D; Johnstone R; Quinlan M, 2020, The Regulation and Management of Workplace Health and Safety: Historical and Emerging Trends, Sheldon P; Gregson S; Lansbury R; Sanders K, (eds.), Routledge, London, http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9780429265679
  • Book Chapters | 2020
    Gregson S; Humphrys E, 2020, 'The West Gate Bridge collapse: how disaster happens', in Sheldon P; Gregson S; Lansbury R; Sanders K (ed.), The Regulation and Management of Workplace Health and Safety: Historical and Emerging Trends, Routledge, London, pp. 27 - 55, https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780429265679
    Book Chapters | 2020
    Sheldon P; Gregson S, 2020, 'Michael Quinlan — Intellectual Journey of a Scholar, Teacher and Policy Expert', in Sheldon P; Gregson S; Lansbury R; Sanders K (ed.), The Regulation and Management of Workplace Health and Safety: Historical and Emerging Trends, Routledge, London, pp. 1 - 21, https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780429265679
    Book Chapters | 2006
    Gregson SE, 2006, 'Who built the Opera House?', in Building a Masterpiece: the Sydney Opera House, edn. 1, Powerhouse Publishing/Lund Humphries, Sydney, pp. 122 - 135
  • Journal articles | 2024
    Gregson S; Quinlan MG, 2024, 'Death at Dreamworld: Ten pathways to disaster and failure to learn', Economic and Labour Relations Review, http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/elr.2024.27
    Journal articles | 2020
    Gregson S; Bongiorno F; Hampson I; Rhiannon L; Lyons T; Humphrys E, 2020, 'Roundtable. Assessing the Accord and Labor’s Role in Neoliberalism.', Labour History: a journal of labour and social history, 118, pp. 135 - 176, https://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=283277080664867;res=IELAPA;type=pdf
    Journal articles | 2020
    Gregson S; Humphrys E, 2020, 'Philanthropy and the "Management" of Working-Class Women: The West Gate Bridge Disaster', Labour History: a journal of labour and social history, 119, pp. 143 - 172, http://dx.doi.org/10.3828/jlh.2020.22
    Journal articles | 2020
    Gregson S; Quinlan M, 2020, 'Lessons from the Past in Occupational Health and Safety', Labour History: a journal of labour and social history, 119, pp. v - xiv, http://dx.doi.org/10.3828/jlh/2020.16
    Journal articles | 2020
    Gregson S; Quinlan M, 2020, 'Subcontracting and low pay kill: Lessons from the health and safety consequences of sweated labour in the garment industry, 1880-1920', Labor History (US), 61, pp. 534 - 550, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0023656X.2020.1818712
    Journal articles | 2020
    Quinlan M; Gregson S, 2020, 'EDITORIAL', Labour History, 119, pp. V - XIV, http://dx.doi.org/10.3828/jlh.2020.15
    Journal articles | 2016
    Gregson S; Quinlan M; Hampson I, 2016, 'Professionalism or Inter-Union Solidarity? Organising Licensed Aircraft Maintenance Engineers, 1955–75', Labour History, pp. 35 - 56, http://dx.doi.org/10.3828/labourhistory.110.0035
    Journal articles | 2016
    Gregson SE; Quinlan M; Hampson I; Junor A; Carney T, 2016, 'Supply Chains and the Manufacture of Precarious Work: The Safety Implications of Outsourcing/ Offshoring Heavy Aircraft Maintenance', E-Journal of International and Comparative Labour Studies, 5, pp. 3 - 36, http://adapt.it/EJCLS/index.php/ejcls_adapt/article/view/115
    Journal articles | 2016
    Gregson SE; Quinlan M; Hampson I, 2016, 'Professionalism or Inter-Union Solidarity? Organising Licensed Aircraft Maintenance Engineers, 1955-1975', Labour History: a journal of labour and social history, 110, pp. 35 - 56, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5263/labourhistory/110.0035
    Journal articles | 2015
    Gregson S; Hampson I; Junor A; Fraser D; Quinlan M; Williamson A, 2015, 'Supply chains, maintenance and safety in the Australian airline industry', Journal of Industrial Relations, 57, pp. 604 - 623, http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0022185615582234
    Journal articles | 2014
    Gregson SE; Quinlan M; Hampson I, 2014, 'Slow to learn: regulatory oversight of the safety of outsourced aircraft maintenance in the USA', Policy and Practice in Health and Safety, 12, pp. 71 - 90, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14774003.2014.11667798
    Journal articles | 2013
    Quinlan MG; Hampson I; Gregson SE, 2013, 'Outsourcing and offshoring aircraft maintenance in the US: Implications for safety', Safety Science, 57, pp. 283 - 292, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2013.02.011
    Journal articles | 2012
    Gregson SE, 2012, 'The Administration of Titanic Relief in Southampton, 1912-1959', English Historical Review
    Journal articles | 2012
    Gregson SE, 2012, 'Women and children first? The administration of Titanic relief in Southampton, 1912-59', English Historical Review, 127, pp. 83 - 109, http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ehr/cer352
    Journal articles | 2011
    Hampson I; Junor A; Gregson SE, 2011, 'Missing in action: Aircraft maintenance and the recent 'HRM in the airlines' literature', International Journal of Human Resource Management, 23, pp. 2561 - 2575, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2011.633278
    Journal articles | 2011
    North-Samardzic ; Gregson SE, 2011, 'Commitment or Even Compliance? An Australian University's Approach to Equal Employment Opportunity', Relations Industrielles - Industrial Relations, 66, pp. 279 - 301, http://search.proquest.com/docview/887910447/fulltextPDF/13372686EB73B924C04/8?accountid=12763
    Journal articles | 2009
    Gregson SE, 2009, 'Oral Historian and Activist, 'Studs' Terkel (1912-2008)', Labour History, 96, pp. 233 - 234, http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=798863730281436;res=IELHSS
    Journal articles | 2008
    Gregson SE, 2008, 'Titanic `downunder`: ideology, myth and memorialization', Social History, 33, pp. 268 - 283
    Journal articles | 2007
    Gregson SE, 2007, 'War, Racism and Industrial Relations in an Australian Mining Town, 1916-1935', Economic and Labour Relations Review, 18, pp. 79 - 98, http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/103530460701800105
    Journal articles | 2004
    Gregson S, 2004, 'Defending Internationalism in Interwar Broken Hill', Labour History, pp. 115 - 136, http://dx.doi.org/10.3828/27515970
    Journal articles | 2004
    Gregson SE, 2004, 'Defending Internationalism in Interwar Broken Hill', Labour History, 86, pp. 115 - 136, http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/27515970
    Journal articles | 2001
    Gregson SE, 2001, '`It all started on the Mines`? the 1934 Kalgoorlie Race Riots Revisited', Labour History, pp. 21 - 40, http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/27516768
  • Conference Abstracts | 2020
    Gregson S; Humphrys E, 2020, 'Memorialising workers: the West Gate Bridge collapse', in AIRAANZ conference proceedings 2020, Queenstown New Zealand, pp. 1 - 209, presented at Doing things differently? IR practice and research beyond 2020, Queenstown New Zealand, 11 February 2020 - 14 February 2020, https://www.airaanz.org/uploads/2/1/6/3/2163987/airaanz_proceedings_v14.pdf
    Conference Papers | 2010
    Gregson SE, 2010, 'Memorialising Workers: 'reading' a material heritage', in Work in Progress: Crises, Choices and Continuity: Proceedings of the 24th AIRAANZ Conference, College of Business, UWS/AIRAANZ, Sydney, pp. R13_Gregson - Proceedings on USB, presented at 24TH AIRAANZ Conference, Sydney, Australia, 03 February 2010 - 05 February 2010, http://airaanzweb.weebly.com/uploads/2/1/6/3/2163987/airaanz_introduction_index.pdf
    Conference Papers | 2010
    Hampson I; Junor A; Gregson S, 2010, 'The political economy and skills of aircraft maintenance: Towards a research agenda.', in The political economy and skills of aircraft maintenance: Towards a research agenda., 28th International Labour Process Conference, Rutgers University, presented at 28th International Labour Process Conference, Rutgers University, 15 March 2010 - 17 March 2010
    Reports | 2009
    Gregson SE, 2009, Race, Identity and Belonging: A Soundings Collection, Australian Society for the Study of Labour History
    Reports | 2009
    Gregson SE, 2009, Trade Unionism in Australia: A History from Flood to Ebb Tide, Australian Society for the Study of Labour History
    Other | 2008
    Gregson SE, 2008, The RSL: A rejoinder, Blackwell Publishing Ltd,