Acknowledgements

The Government of Alberta funded the development and production of the first edition of this textbook through its Open Education Resource (OER) funding program. The central premise of OER is that knowledge should be made freely available to students, workers, community groups, and employers. Accordingly, this book can be downloaded from the Athabasca University Press website (www.aupress.ca) and shared free of charge. It will also be available for purchase in printed format at a nominal cost.

In addition to acknowledging funding provided by the Government of Alberta, the authors would like to acknowledge the importance of the research leaves in the collective agreement negotiated by the Athabasca University Faculty Association. These leaves have allowed us the time to research, think through, and write this book. The authors would also like to thank the two anonymous reviewers whose comments were most helpful as well as the various workers, trade unionists, and occupational health and safety activists who have generously shared their knowledge with us over the years. We would also like to thank our families and co-workers for their indulgence and support while we completed this manuscript.