SEIN Research Group

SEIN, which stands for Sustainable Employment and Inclusion, is a research group at UHasselt's Faculty of Business Economics. We conduct fundamental and applied research on the economic, social and ethical dimensions of (in)equality in the workplace.

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SEIN Research

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Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Organisations

We focus on understanding the reproduction of inequalities in the workplace and the workplace experiences of different minoritised groups such as women, people with disabilities, people with a migration background, among others. Our work explores ways to foster diverse and inclusive organisations where everyone experiences equal career opportunities, a sense of belonging, and overall well-being.

Sub-topics:

  • Migration, ethnicity, and race
  • Religious diversity
  • Disability and neurodiversity
  • Gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation
  • Intersectionality
  • Diversity management
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Sustainable Human Resource Management and Employment

We explore sustainable approaches to human resource management (HRM) and innovative ways of organising work to enable long-term employability and career sustainability. Our focus is on practices and structures that promote meaningful and sustainable work, a healthy work-life balance, and employee wellbeing.

Sub-topics:

  • Sustainable HRM pathways
  • Sustainable employment for individuals distanced from the labour market
  • Wellbeing and the prevention of burnout
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Alternative Forms of Organising

We engage with critical and innovative theoretical perspectives within organisational theory to explore alternative ways of structuring and organising work. These challenge conventional paradigms of hierarchy, efficiency, and human-centred organisation. This includes examining prefigurative organisations as experimental spaces for social change, drawing on animal organisation studies to decentre human exceptionalism, and theorising organisational space as a site of power, and agency.

Sub-topics:

  • Prefigurative organisations
  • Animal organisation studies
  • Organisational space
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Academic community

Editorial Boards

Staff members of SEIN are represented in editorial boards of international and national scientific journals:

Organization (The Critical Journal of Organization, Theory and Society)

Member editorial board: prof. dr. Koen Van Laer

Human Relations

Member editorial board: prof. dr. Koen Van Laer

Academic Conference Groups

European Group for Organisational Studies (EGOS)

Member of Standing Working Group on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: prof. dr. Koen Van Laer

Collaborations

Projects

SEIN staff members participate in different projects, such as:

Inspire - Europe’s Centre of Excellence on Inclusive Gender Equality in R&I

INSPIRE connects scholars, equality experts, and practitioners to share resources and co-create new ones, promoting innovative approaches to gender equality. The project develops new indicators for inclusive Gender Equality Plan (GEP) development, conducts a Europe-wide GEP monitoring survey, and identifies key conditions for impactful GEP implementation.

From outside the labour market to sustainably employed

The project "Van niet-beroepsactief naar duurzaam tewerkgesteld: een blauwdruk voor een match tussen niet-beroepsactieven en werkgevers via jobontwerp" aims to promote sustainable employment for groups facing barriers to the labour market by exploring inclusive job opportunities and methodologies. Supported by SALKturbo (Provincie Limburg), it is a collaboration between UHasselt, vzw In-Z, Stad Genk, ACV Limburg, VDAB Limburg, VOKA Limburg, and VKW Limburg. The final output, expected in June 2025, will be a website offering practical methods and tools to help labour market actors create better matches between organisations and individuals outside the labour market.

Networks

SEIN staff participates in different formal and informal networks, like:

QUALCOR

Qualcor is an informal network that gathers twice a year, rotating between partner universities, to discuss work-in-progress related to qualitative, critical, and organizational research. These meetings bring together senior scholars and junior researchers, with three key goals: developing research and presentation skills through constructive feedback, inspiring new ideas by exploring emerging theories and methodologies, and fostering connections between researchers across Belgian and nearby universities who work in similar fields.

Critical Junior Scholars Network

The Critical Junior Scholars Network is a collaborative group of junior researchers (doctoral students and post-docs) where researchers discuss critical theories, methods, and approaches, providing feedback on papers, proposals, and research ideas. It also serves as a supportive space for informal discussions on the challenges and opportunities of pursuing a PhD, including data collection and analysis strategies.

Contact

Social media

If you are interested in knowing more about our research group's work or collaborating with us, please reach out to us!

To keep updated with the work we do, follow us on LinkedIn

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Contact details

Location

Hasselt University Campus Diepenbeek - Agoralaan Gebouw D

Information for

Programmes

Hasselt University

Tools