Dr Fiona Macdonald

Dr Fiona Macdonald is a Vice-Chancellor's Senior Research Fellow in the School of Management. Fiona's research focuses on three interconnected themes: the changing nature of work and employment relationships; regulating for decent work and gender equality; and the political economy of work. The empirical focus of Fiona's current research on the social care workforce also brings in her long-standing interest in social policy and welfare systems. In 2016 Fiona was awarded an Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award to examine the workforce challenges of Australia's new National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Her research has strong policy relevance and she works closely with industry as well as with national and international networks of employment and care scholars. In 2017 she received the RMIT Vice-Chancellor's Award for Research impact – Early Career Researcher. Fiona is a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of the recently established International Journal of Care and Caring.

Research interests

• Employment regulation, gender equality and decent work 
• Informality in employment and the labour market
• The political economy of marketised care systems 
• Care work and working lives

• PhD (Political Science), University of Queensland
• Master of Social Science (Social Policy), RMIT University
• Graduate Diploma in Counselling Psychology, RMIT University
• Bachelor of Behavioural Science, La Trobe University

• Senior Research Fellow, RMIT University (Oct 2014 – present).
• Research Fellow, Decent Work and Gender Equality, Centre for Work + Life, University of South Australia (Sept 2012-Sept 2014).
• Panel Member, Victorian State Services Authority Panel of Grievance Review & Workplace Investigations Officers and Independent Chair, Tripartite Work Review Panels (consultancy) (2007-2012).
• Research consultant & research associate, (p/t project appointments), School of Political Science and International Studies, University of Queensland: Centre for Applied Social Research, RMIT University; and Centre for Citizenship and Human Rights, Deakin University (2006-2007).
• Organisational Consultant and Senior Researcher URCOT (Union Research Centre on Organisations and Technology) (2005-2006).
• Executive Director, Equity Research Centre, Victorian industry advisory body on equity and diversity in employment, education and training (2001-2004).
• Research & Policy Manager (Research Officer until 1997), Brotherhood of St Laurence (1994-2004).