I am Sam Hamer, a PhD candidate embedded within the GovLoss project with a background in sociology. After a Bachelor in Philosophy at the UvA, I attained both a Master’s degree in Sociology and a Research Master’s degree in Social Sciences at the UvA. Following graduation, I worked as a Junior Lecturer in Sociology for several years, alongside a smaller appointment as research assistant on higher education intervention. As part of the Govloss team, I will study loss in the automotive industry, with a particular focus on trade unions. As both the automotive industry and trade unions decline across the EU, the EU increasingly intervenes through policy directives to govern these losses. As a scholar trained in ethnography, I will head to the production plant to investigate these processes from below. Aside from scholarly work, I am an active union organizer and borrel enjoyer.