OECD urges reform of junior researcher jobs

Call for measures to combat “unkind and aggressive working conditions” for researchers on temporary contracts

There is an urgent need to reform the employment of junior researchers and to improve their working conditions, according to a wide-ranging report from the OECD.

Following a two-year study, the intergovernmental organisation has issued recommendations for governments, funders and research institutions for improving the lot of what it calls the “research precariat”, a growing body of postdoctoral researchers employed for long periods on consecutive fixed-term contracts.