Associate Professor (Ph.D. Brown University)

Research Interests

Sociology of the labour market, Social class, Stratification and inequality, Work and the professions

Contact Information

Ph: 709-864-7453
Em: rhill@mun.ca
Office: A-4057

Personal Profile

Dr. Hill was born in Preston, Lancashire, England and received his B.A. in Social Sciences and a Post-Graduate Certificate in Education from the University of Leicester where his early mentors included Norbert Elias and Anthony Giddens. His M.A. and Ph.D. degrees are from Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, where his Marxist theoretical leanings were moderated with a heavy dose of empiricism and expertise in quantitative analysis and computer applications. His early research was on class structure and class-consciousness, focusing on empirical studies of the British working class and he published in a variety of scholarly journals, including: Behavior Science Research, American Sociological Review, Criminology, etc. However, after moving to Newfoundland in 1974, his interests began to reflect more the nature of Newfoundland society where the proletariat was harder to find! A research grant from the federal government facilitated new research interests in the structure of work and unemployment in Newfoundland which resulted in publication of The Meaning of Work and the Reality of Unemployment in the Newfoundland Context. Subsequently, Dr. Hill has served as an advisor to the Federal Minister of Employment and Immigration and policy consultant to the NDP and Newfoundland Federation of Labour. Even after thirty years Dr. Hill still counts it as a privilege and a pleasure to teach introductory sociology, sociology of unemployment and supervise and teach graduate students. He is the proud and devoted father of three children.