The History of Labour Intermediation

<p> Searching for a job has been an everyday affair in both modern and past societies and employment a concern for both individuals and institutions. The case studies in this volume investigate job search and placement practices in European countries Australia and India in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The contributors explore how looking for work becomes a means by which participants (individuals placement agents trade unions municipalities administrations state authorities and schools) articulated specific interests perspectives and agendas. Taking an exploratory approach the chapters illustrate different approaches to the history of employment and job searching ranging from organizational and regulatory histories to the analysis of practices and autobiographical accounts. In the process they uncover the interrelations of search practices and attempts to arrange placement services.</p>