Bringing Back the Labour Beat Award

Why do we work the way we do? Historically, ‘labour beat’ reporters sought to find the answers. With the world of work evolving and workers’ rights strengthening, we are witnessing a resurgence of labour reporting that intersects working conditions, labour rights, and social justice. The Bringing Back the Labour Beat award is intended for journalism students to delve into this convergence and ask the tough questions, be it about conditions of migrant farmworkers, workers getting sick or dying on the job, or the rise of precarious work. We work most of our lives. The recipient of the labour beat award will make its audience reflect on what our labour is worth. Natasha Luckhardt is a labour advocate, writer, filmmaker, former Concordia Journalism student, and Political Science graduate. When Natasha was completing her master’s degree in Labour Studies at McMaster University, a family friend told her that former General Electric workers in Peterborough, Ontario were “dropping like flies” from cancer. After writing her thesis on the issue, she thought, these workers need to be seen. Natasha started a crowdfunding initiative, teamed up with a local filmmaker, and filmed in the community for three years. The film was featured on CBC Docs and continues to inspire workers to action today. Now the Director of Health, Safety and Environment at the Ontario Federation of Labour, Natasha takes an intersectional approach to health and safety and strongly believes in the power of workers telling their stories. Preference to students from historically underrepresented groups. Applicants must self-identify as belonging to an underrepresented community and provide a statement as to why such a Bursary would be meaningful for them. For indigenous applicants, proof of identity is required. Students are required to provide information on their nation and community of origin in their application statement, as well as provide proof in the form of documentation to FAAO. Candidates must submit a ‘Labour beat’ article, either published or unpublished, that they wrote during their studies in journalism, for consideration. The department of Journalism will review this article.

In-course bursaries Concordia offers need-based In-Course Bursaries to returning Bachelor's students in the Fall semester.

Application deadline The 2024-2025 Undergraduate In-Course Bursary Program will be open April 1, 2024.

In-Course Bursaries are awarded by the Financial Aid and Awards Office to previously admitted students following an application-based competition that includes a financial need test and holistic committee review. Applicants are notified of the results after the Financial Aid and Awards Office receives results from the bursary committee.

The In-Course Bursary program normally open April 1, 2024 and will close on May 15, 2024.