- Lukas Lehner wins two awards for dissertation completed at INET Oxford on how social policies can support employment;
- Awarding bodies praise policy-focus and real-world impact of research;
- Lehner's work 'cuts through polarised debate' to find support for job guarantee.
Lukas Lehner has received two international awards for his dissertation completed at the University of Oxford under the supervision of Professor Emeritus Brian Nolan and Professor Bernhard Ebbinghaus.
Lehner's dissertation, 'Beyond Unemployment: An Investigation of Social Policies to Empower Workers in a Changing World of Work', combined field and survey experiments to provide new insights on employment programs, job training and labour market institutions.
His real-world pilot of a guaranteed employment scheme in a small town in Austria has been widely praised, with the policy having been picked up for a further roll-out by the Austrian Government and European Union. This work, completed at INET Oxford, was co-authored with Professorial Research Fellow Maximilian Kasy.
In an announcement on 6 November 2025, The Upjohn Institute (Michigan) awarded Lehner first prize for the best Ph.D. dissertation on employment policies and issues during the 24-month period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2025. Since its inception in 1995, this marks the first time the first prize has been awarded to someone at a UK institution, and only the fifth time to someone outside the US.
This followed a decision by The Labour and Employment Relations Association (USA) to recognise Lehner with the Thomas A. Kochan & Stephen R. Sleigh Best Dissertation prize at their 77th Annual Meeting in June, for the papers which made ‘the most significant contributions to the body of research in the field during the calendar year'. This Award is regarded as the most prestigious dissertation award in Industrial Relations.
'Substantial policy focus'
The awarding bodies noted the policy-oriented focus and real-world impact of Lehner's research, pointing to the successful Marienthal Job Guarantee, which continues to have impact.
"His dissertation examined how social policies can better support unemployed workers in a changing world. His work combines field and survey experiments and comparative analysis to provide new insight on employment programs, job training, and labor market institutions." the Upjohn Institute said.
"In one field experiment, Lehner evaluates Austria’s Marienthal Job Guarantee, which offered guaranteed employment to long-term unemployed residents. His study shows that stable, meaningful work improves participants’ well-being, social inclusion, and community life—benefits that extend beyond income.
"A second field experiment investigates why many unemployed workers do not take advantage of job training programs. Working with 50,000 job seekers, Lehner and his coauthor tested low-cost ways to reduce stigma and information barriers, finding that clear communication can boost participation, especially among women and low-income workers.
"Another study analyzes the rise of temporary jobs across Europe and finds that temporary employment can slow wage growth for permanent workers, illustrating how labor market dualization affects entire economies.
"In the final section of his dissertation, Lehner explores unemployed workers’ preferences for guaranteed income versus guaranteed employment through a survey experiment. Contrary to polarized public debate on this topic, he finds broad support for both ideas—with stronger preference for job guarantees—suggesting the two policies can complement one another."
'Rigorous empirical work in labor economics'
Commenting on the dual awards for his dissertation, Lukas Lehner, who is now an Assistant Professor at the University of Edinburgh, said: "I am deeply honoured. For many years, I have looked up to its past recipients as examples of the kind of scholar I have been striving to be."
"Receiving both awards, one in labor economics and one in industrial relations, serves as a great reflection of the evolving intersections and research potential I seek to contribute to: integrating rigorous empirical work in labor economics with institutional perspectives and approaches from industrial relations and social policy to advance our knowledge creation on the world of work."
About the awards
The W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research announces its 31st annual prize for the best PhD dissertation on employment-related issues. The Institute has sponsored dissertation awards each year since 1995. A first prize of $2,500 is being offered. Up to two honorable mention awards of $1,000 may also be given. Eligible persons for the 2025 prize are those whose dissertation was accepted during the 24-month period from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2025. The deadline for submission is July 19, 2025. The dissertation may come from any academic discipline, but it must have a substantial policy focus.
The Thomas A. Kochan and Stephen R. Sleigh Best Dissertation Award is an annual competition for post-doctoral students in the field of industrial relations or related fields such as history, political science, economics, sociology, etc., as long as they are broadly related to employment relations as reflected in the publications and membership of the LERA. The competition is open to doctoral students who completed their dissertation at an accredited college or university in the calendar year preceding the next LERA Annual Meeting. The competition prize to is $1,000 (one-thousand-dollars), with the winner announced at the Association's Annual Meeting.
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