Research interests
- Occupational health and safety and temporary agency workers
- Labour market change
- Human Resource Management
- Industrial Relations Policy and Strategies
- Strategies for improving the safe placement of agency workers
- Interrelationships between human resource management policies and practices and OHS outcomes
Affiliations
- Association Of Industrial Relations Academics Of Australia & New Zealand (Former President)
- Industrial Relations Society of Victoria (Former Vice-President, Advocacy & Dispute Resolution)
- International Industrial Relations Association
- Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants
- Associate, Business Outsourcing and Restructuring Regulatory Research Network
Teaching interests
- Human Resource Management
- Workplace Counselling and Negotiation
Units taught
MMH250 Workplace Counselling and Negotiation
MPM722 Human Resource Management
MPR722 Human Resource Management Residential
Knowledge areas
Precarious employment and workplace health and safety
Temporary migrant workers
Worker representation in the construction industry
Regulating labour hire employment (temporary employment agencies)
Research groups
Worker representation in OHS in the Construction Industry, with Profs. Michael Quinlan (UNSW), David Walters (Cardiff) and Dr. Emma Wadsworth (Cardiff)
The Harvest Trail: A study of employment and OHS amongst international backpackers in the Australian harvesting sector, with Emer. Prof. Malcolm Rimmer (La Trobe).
Awards
- 2009 Faculty Exemplar of Teaching Excellence Award, for Unfair Dismissal Workshop conducted in MPR722.
- 2005 Vice Chancellor's award for Outstanding Achievement in Teaching and Learning (team award for residential teaching).
- Recognised expert in OHS and labour hire employment, including expert opinions in court cases
- Widely cited in Reports of State and National government enquiries involving OHS, and changing labour markets
- Organised the Industrial Relations Society of Victoria/Australian Industrial Relations Commission Advocacy Training Programs (until 2008)
- Organised the International Symposium on Regulating Precarious Employment in 2011, sponsored by Safe Work Australia
- Recipient of two Deakin University Teaching Awards for residential program teaching
Projects
Worker Representation in OHS in the Australian Construction Industry, with Profs. Michael Quinlan (UNSW), David Walters (Cardiff) and Dr. Emma Wadsworth (Cardiff). Research grant from the CFMEU
The Harvest Trail: Employment and OHS amongst international backpackers in the Australian harvesting sector, with Emer. Prof. Malcolm Rimmer (La Trobe).
Employment status and employee well-being, with Drs. Melissa Parris, Kerrie Saville & Justine Ferrer.
Licensing of temporary agency employers (labour hire employers): a review of international standards and their relevance to Australia.
Publications
Elsa Underhill, Michael Quinlan
(2024), pp. 1-8, International Journal of Social Determinants of Health and Health Services, Thousand Oaks, CA., C1
The Decline of Trade Unions and Worker Representation
Elsa Underhill
(2022), Vol. 3, pp. 855-871, Handbook on Management and Employment Practices, Cham, Switzerland, B1
Organising across borders: mobilising temporary migrant labour in Australian food production
E Underhill, D Groutsis, D van den Broek, M Rimmer
(2020), Vol. 62, pp. 278-303, Journal of industrial relations, London, Eng., C1
E Underhill, S Huang, S Yi, M Rimmer
(2019), pp. 147-174, Journal of Australian political economy, Sydney, N.S.W., C1
Migration Intermediaries and Codes of Conduct: Temporary Migrant Workers in Australian Horticulture
E Underhill, D Groutsis, D van Den Broek, M Rimmer
(2018), Vol. 153, pp. 675-689, Journal of Business Ethics, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, C1
E Underhill, M Rimmer
(2017), Vol. 72, pp. 33-55, Relations Industrielles, Quebec, Canada, C1
Layered vulnerability: Temporary migrants in Australian horticulture
E Underhill, M Rimmer
(2016), Vol. 58, pp. 608-626, Journal of industrial relations, London, Eng., C1
Temporary migrant workers in Australian horticulture: boosting supply but at what price?
E Underhill, M Rimmer
(2015), pp. 143-168, How global migration changes the workforce diversity equation, Newcastle, Eng., B1
E Underhill, M Rimmer
(2015), Vol. 13, pp. 25-46, Policy and practice in health and safety, Leicester, Eng., C1
E Underhill
(2013), pp. 191-208, Australian workplace relations, New York, NY, B1
Managing work health and safety : recent developments and future directions
C Gallagher, E Underhill
(2012), Vol. 50, pp. 227-244, Asia pacific journal of human resources, London, England, C1
How precarious employment affects health and safety at work : the case of temporary agency workers
E Underhill, M Quinlan
(2011), Vol. 66, pp. 397-421, Relations industrielles, Quebec, Canada, C1
Precarious work : recent research and policy challenges
E Underhill, K Lippel, M Quinlan
(2011), Vol. 9, pp. 1-6, Policy and practice in health and society, Leicestershire, U. K., C1
E Underhill, M Quinlan
(2011), Vol. 9, pp. 109-131, Policy and practice in health and society, Leicester, U. K., C1
Should host employers have greater responsibility for temporary agency workers' employment rights?
E Underhill
(2010), Vol. 48, pp. 338-355, Asia pacific journal of human resources, Thousand Oaks, Calif., C1
State protection for temporary agency workers: Australian developments
E Underhill, M Rimmer
(2009), pp. 173-192, Modernization of labour law and industrial relations in a comparative perspective, Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands, B1
Industry differences in the neoliberal transformation of Australian industrial relations
M Bray, E Underhill
(2009), Vol. 40, pp. 372-392, Industrial relations journal, London, England, C1
Temporary agency workers and the contribution of workplace unfamiliarity to workplace injuries
E Underhill
(2007), pp. 1-11, AIRAANZ 2007 : diverging employment relations patterns in Australia and New Zealand, conference proceedings, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand, E1
The role of employment agencies in structuring and regulating labour markets
E Underhill
(2006), pp. 282-304, Labour law and labour market regulation: essays on the construction, constitution and regulation of labour markets and work relationships, Annandale, N.S.W., B1
Labour hire employment and independent contracting in Australia: two inquiries, how much change?
E Underhill
(2006), Vol. 19, pp. 1-9, Australian journal of labour law, Sydney, N.S.W., C1
E Underhill
(2006), pp. 533-542, AIRAANZ 2006 : 21st century work : high road or low road : proceedings of the 20th Conference of the Association of Industrial Relations Academics of Australia and New Zealand, Adelaide, South Australia, E1
Winners or losers? Work/life balance and temporary agency workers
E Underhill
(2005), Vol. 16, pp. 29-60, Labour & industry, Nathan, Qld., C1
The importance of having a say: labour hire employees workplace voice
E Underhill
(2005), AIRAANZ 05 : Reworking work : proceedings of the 19th conference of the Association of Industrial Relations Academics of Australia and New Zealand, Sydney, N.S.W., E1
Working under labour hire arrangements: the experience and views of Victorian labour hire employees
E Underhill
(2004), [Melbourne, Vic], A6
Changing work and OHS: the challenge of labour hire employment
E Underhill
(2004), pp. 544-551, AIRAANZ 2004 : New economies : new industrial relations : proceedings of the 18th AIRAANZ Conference, Noosa, Queensland, E1
The Australian construction industry: union control in a disorganised industry
E Underhill
(2003), pp. 114-137, Building chaos an international comparison of deregulation in the construction industry, London, England, B1-1
Workplace 'bargaining' and the wages/working time nexus: counting the cost of decentralisation
E Underhill, S Bertone, J Doughney
(2003), pp. 141-157, Developments in enterprise bargaining in Australia, Croydon, Vic., B1-1
E Underhill, D Worland
(2003), Vol. 41, pp. 260-278, Asia Pacific journal of human resources, London, England, C1-1
Occupational safety and health management systems in Australia: barriers to success
C Gallagher, E Underhill, M Rimmer
(2003), Vol. 1, pp. 67-81, Policy and practice in health and safety, Wigston, England, C1
J Beaumont
(2001), pp. 197-210, Great world sar 1914-45 : volume 2, the peoples` experience, London, England, B1
The Victorian labour hire maintenance workers' strike of 1997
E Underhill
(1999), Vol. 10, pp. 73-91, Economic and labour relations review, London, Eng., C1-1
Deregulating Precarious Employment in Victoria: Trends in Employee Complaints
Elsa Underhill, Hubert Fernando
(1998), Vol. 8, pp. 43-60, Labour and Industry, C1-1
Eliminating traditional employment: troubleshooters available in the building and meat industries
E Underhill, D Kelly
(1993), Vol. 35, pp. 398-423, Journal of industrial relations, London, Eng., C1-1
Funded Projects at Deakin
Other Public Sector Funding
For the provision of research into strategies for improving workplace health and safety for labour placement industry workers in Queensland
Dr Elsa Underhill
DJAG QLD Department of Justice & Attorney-General, Queensland Government
- 2010: $41,481
Information seeking behaviours of temporary visa workers
Dr Elsa Underhill
Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transports and Resources
- 2018: $26,756
- 2017: $14,407
Supervisions
No completed student supervisions to report