Professor Jo Swaffield, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Southampton since 2022, was honoured for her outstanding contributions to economics.
The award recognises her research on the UK labour market, focusing on low pay, the gender wage gap and in-work poverty.
Prof Swaffield said: “I am delighted to receive this honour and for my work to be recognised in this way.
Professor Jo Swaffield (Image: University of Southampton)
“I’m also grateful to the outstanding and generous colleagues I’ve been fortunate enough to work with and for their support throughout my career.”
Her research has informed major public policy decisions, including the Low Pay Commission’s recommendations on the UK National Minimum Wage.
She has also served on the Home Office’s Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) since 2018.
Prof Swaffield said: “Good public policy starts with having a solid, reliable evidence to base decisions on.
“I feel very privileged to have had to the opportunity to contribute to policy areas that I care deeply about and that are critical to creating a fairer society and economy.”
Beyond her academic work, she is a trustee of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and a governor at the National Institute of Economic, Social Research.