Home>Rébecca Mathiot
Research Interest(s): Maritime history, occupational risks, welfare state, social history, labour history
Discipline(s): History
Language(s): French, English, German, Arabic
Biography
Rébecca Mathiot's research focuses on examining the healthcare, prevention, inspection, recognition, and compensation of occupational risks faced by fishermen and merchant seafarers in early 20th century France. Her aim is to shed light on the margins of welfare state history through the lens of maritime occupations, which were dangerous, difficult, and minority occupations. The interest of this study lies in writing a social history of occupational diseases and accidents in a unique workplace: the sea. She also aims to contribute to the recognition and understanding of the suffering of seafarers at work. The thesis thus fully integrates the sea, with its diverse spaces and actors, into contemporary labour history, the history of the welfare state, and the history of social politics.
Background
Since September 2025: PhD candidate at the Centre for History at Sciences Po
2025: Agrégation in history (France highest-level teaching certification)
2022-2024: Master’s degree in history at Sciences Po. Master thesis supervised by Gerd-Rainer Horn (CHSP): “"Jeune marin, qu’as-tu à dire ?” La Jeunesse Maritime Chrétienne (JMC) de 1959 à 1969 : organisations, représentations, revendications" [‘Young seafarer, what do you have to say?’ The Christian Maritime Youth from 1959 to 1969: organisations, representations, revendications]
2019-2024: Bachelor’s degree in social science at Sciences Po Paris, European specialisation in Nancy
Thesis topic
« Le Mal de Mer. Une histoire sociale des risques, des souffrances et des protections du travail maritime (France, fin du XIXe siècle-années 1950) » [Seasickness. A social history of risks, sufferings, and protections of maritime labour (France, end of the 19th century-1950s)], supervised Nicolas Delalande (CHSP).
Teaching
Histoire des mondes contemporains – Égalité, hiérarchies et émancipations aux XX-XXIe siècles (1st and 2nd years, Paris campus, lecture by Nicolas Delalande)