Cory Runstedler

Ph.D. Candidate

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Education

Master of Business Administration, University of Kentucky, 2018

Master of Arts, Sociology, Wilfrid Laurier University, 2016

Bachelor of Arts, Sociology (Honors, Crime and Deviance Specialization), University of Waterloo, 2015

 

Subfields

Comparative Politics

International Relations

 

Cory Runstedler is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Connecticut. He holds a BA in Sociology (Honors, Crime & Deviance specialization) from the University of Waterloo, an MA in Sociology from Wilfrid Laurier University, an MBA from the University of Kentucky, and an MA in Political Science from the University of Connecticut.

 

Cory’s research lies at the intersection of comparative politics, labor studies, and public policy. His dissertation, “It’s About the People, Not the Package: Lessons from the Warehousing Sector,” develops a cross-national, longitudinal dataset (2003–2023) capturing labor law, union density, and enforcement structures across all 50 U.S. states and 10 Canadian provinces. With this data set he is creating an original ‘Labor Hardship’ index to better understand what factors can improve the lives of workers. This work advances understanding of the enforcement gap between legal labor rights and workers’ lived experiences, providing both theoretical and empirical insights into how political institutions shape collective action and labor outcomes.

 

Before beginning his doctoral studies, Cory worked extensively in the warehousing and logistics sector in both Canada and the United States. This professional background informs his scholarship, grounding his analysis of labor law and industrial relations in the realities of workplace management, logistics, and frontline labor practices. His work has been supported by awards such as the Human Rights Institute Dissertation Writing Fellowship, the SERA-LSA Dissertation Research Grant, and the Governor Abraham Ribicoff Fellowship. He has presented his research at leading conferences including the Labor and Employment Relations Association (LERA), the International Studies Association (ISA), and the Northeastern Political Science Association.