The changing role of trade unions in the sustainable development agenda

Managing the large-scale restructuring away from the previously established resource-wasting industrial mass production and consumption model towards a socially balanced and resource-efficient economy requires an adaptation of interest reconciliation mechanisms, including also new strategic approaches by the main actors. As we are speaking of a transition towards a new model, the role of actors is essential, even if, in most of the climate-change literature, there is scant consideration or analysis of the actors, their interests, and their ideas. The basic question is not simply how ‘civil issues’ can be integrated into the established forms of social dialogue and how trade unions will need to adapt their agenda accordingly, but, more fundamentally, whether these structures are capable of giving a boost to a true paradigm shift in overcoming the unsustainable production model. In other words, are trade unions and social dialogue structures indeed ‘locked into’ this production model, and, if not, what is the way forward? We will examine in this article how dialogue structures and key actors develop new strategies and live up to new challenges in the context of sustainable development. After framing the main context of the climate-change debate in the first section, we present a critical view of the ‘capital–labour’ deal as it was established in the post-WW2 period. In the third section we put forward three main arguments as to how and why trade unions and social dialogue structures are actually in a position to take up broader issues, expand the dialogue, and move away from the resource-wasting consumer-industrial production model. We also show how the trade union movement – at its different organisational levels – takes up this narrative. This is a historical process entailing pitfalls and contradictions, in so far as the broader societal role of trade unions has no obvious roots in their origins and early history. Becoming involved in the great societal challenges of mankind, as in the exemplary case of the paradigm shift in production and consumer patterns of industrial society, may be liable to occasional tensions with their original membership-focused approach. The strategic considerations, on the other hand, of how the transformation to a low-carbon economy should be managed and how its unavoidable costs should be distributed (among employers, employees, the state and consumers) are issues more in line with their traditional role. Contradictions and differing visions necessarily appear also between different organisational levels of the trade union movement.     

Black self-organization in trade unions

This paper considers the significance of self-organization for black and minority workers in trade unions. It embodies a review of the theoretical and empirical evidence in support of black self-organization within unions; that is, a strategy of relative autonomy rather than separatism or submersion within a race-blind union. The theoretical support is derived from arguments concerning identity, participation and power. Much of the empirical material is based upon interviews with black and white lay members and shop stewards from three branches (‘Helthten’, ‘Shaften’ and ‘Mounten’) of the National and Local Government Officers union (NALGO) and with NALGO national officials between 1989 and 1990.     

Labour and racism: trade unions and the selection of parliamentary candidates

The issue of the representation of minorities in political institutions has become central in recent debates about the political sociology of race in British society. This paper uses a case study of a selection process for a prospective parliamentary candidate for the Labour Party to explore the dynamics of recent developments. It explores the following questions: What impact have minority activists had on processes of candidate selection? How have political parties responded to demands for the selection of more black candidates?     

American trade unions and public approval: Can unions please all of the people all of the time?

Public opinion about labor unions has long been viewed as an important determinant of industrial relations outcomes. Yet, analyses of changes in union popularity over time have been largely qualitative and have focused on the impact of short-term idiosyncratic events. This paper provides a quantitative analysis of the determinants of American public approval of unions from 1936 to 1991. Hypotheses relating to the union wage advantage, strike activity, the national unemployment rate, and World War II, receive the strongest support. The implications of these results for organized labor and future research on attitudes toward unions are discussed.     

Patterns of governance structures in trade associations and unions

Most research on the governance of nonprofit organizations concentrates on welfare‐oriented organizations and disregards other types of nonprofits. This article examines the governance structures of trade associations and unions as a special type of nonprofit organization. Analysis is based on a qualitative case study survey of thirty Swiss trade associations. The results distinguish four categories of governance: satellite governance, delegate governance, executive governance, and inner‐circle governance.     

Ports modernization and its influence on trade unions

The restructuring of production resulting from the Port Modernization Law (Law 8.630/90) caused significant changes in work organization of Brazilian Ports. In the case of Mucuripe (Fortaleza, Ceará), in particular, the changes were very intense as Mucuripe is an old port that, before the Law, had labor regulation being governed by Trade Unions. This paper aims to present the perceptions of Union Representatives on the changes brought about by the Law on work organization in the port of Fortaleza, its influence in the organization and in the way the Unions deal with this new reality. Open and exploratory interviews were conducted with representatives of occasional labor workers registered in the Port of Fortaleza OGMO (Org?o Gestor de M?o de Obra, Labor Regulation Management). The analysis of the collected material in the interviews was based on the technique of content analysis proposed by Bardin (1979). Trade Unions have undergone a great loss of power and it has reflected in a relative inability to perform its function and to fight for the rights of the workers. The obvious Trade Unions weakness - a reduction of strikes and less unionized workers - reflects the dominating ideology of capital.     

Eternal legitimacy of New Zealand trade unions: An update

This paper examines the current state of play in New Zealand’s industrial relations policy following the first general election under a system of proportional representation. The implications of the new Coalition Government’s policy statements are examined in light of the current outcomes under the Employment Contracts Act. It is concluded that radical reforms, and therefore radical changes, are unlikely. With the exception of the role of the Employment Court, institutional arrangements and bargaining outcomes under the Employment Contracts Act have become reasonably stable and are unlikely to be radically altered. The role of the Employment Court and to a lesser extent the Employment Tribunal is under threat and a more gradual move towards further liberalization of the labor market through changes to personal grievance procedures and bargaining process requirements cannot be ruled out. This research was funded by a grant from Public Good Science Fund administered by the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST Contract: VUW F514).     

US labour unions and green transitions: depth,breadth, and worker agency

ABSTRACT

The goal of this article is to interpret and analyse two ambitious and prominent cases of labour environmentalism in the USA – the par excellence example of liberal capitalism. In order to capture the nuances, contradictions, and varieties of labour environmentalism, I employ an analytical scheme based on three dimensions. The first dimension (depth) explores the social and environmental commitments manifested in these cases, the second dimension (breadth) explores their spatiality, and the third dimension (agency) explores the degree to which these initiatives reflect a proactive as opposed to a reactive labour environmentalism.     

The future of cooperatives and trade unions: the relevance for the question of democratization of society

ABSTRACT

Co-operatives and trade unions are the oldest organizations of democratic participation, founded nearly 200 years ago. For sure the main challenges for the world and especially for the trade unions and the social economy today are the environmental degradation in all realms and globalization dominated by the financial capital. To better understand these issues a historical approach is needed.     

New Zealand's turbulent waters: the use of forced labour in the fishing industry

In this article, we make an empirical and conceptual contribution to the emerging debate on unfree labour in the context of labour chains and global value chains. We recast an historical view of poor labour practices aboard some foreign charter vessels fishing in New Zealand's waters as something more nefarious. Applying the International Labour Organization (ILO) and European Commission (EC) operational indicators of human trafficking for forced labour to 293 interviews, we evaluate the extent to which we can consider migrant fishing crew aboard South Korean vessels as victims of forced labour. We find that they are indeed victims of forced labour and that there is a need to extend the ILO/EC operational indicators to take into account exit strategies. Specifically, there is insufficient recognition of deception, exploitation and coercion at the point of exit, which can prevent a trafficked victim from exiting the employment relationship. Thus, it is crucial to take account of all stages, from recruitment to exit, to understand fully unfree labour in labour and global value chains.     

The labour process and workplace injuries in the Canadian meat packing industry

Il est nécessaire, pour s'assurer de la productivité, de maintenir un niveau satisfaisant de la santé de travail, et même les ressources, dévouées à la sécurité industrielle, peuvent réduire les bénéfices., Cette contradiction est évidente dans l'abattage et la transformation de viande au Canada qui est caractérisée dans les années récentes par un décroissement d'emploi et de salaire, mais il se passe aussi un accroissement du rendement et des blessures du travail. La relation entre l'organisation du travail et les blessures industrielles est examinée dans une étude de deux abattoires, Usine A et Usine B. Chez Usine A, l'augmentation de l'organisation du travail correpond aux blessures industrielles tandis que Usine B était beaucoup plus équilibré. Une solution du problème de la santé du travail chez Usine A est difficile à obtenir à cause des intérêts contradictoires entre les ouvriers et l'administration. The problem of occupational health is rooted in the fact that a satisfactory level of occupational health is necessary to maintain productivity in an industrial society and yet resources devoted to workplace health and safety can detract from profitability. This contradictory situation is evident in the Canadian meat packing industry which in recent years has experienced declining relative wage and employment levels and an intensified labour process along with a concomitant increase in workplace injuries. The relationship between the labour process and occupational injuries is explored in case studies of two packinghouses, Plant A and Plant B. In Plant A an intensified labour process went hand in hand with a rising rate of workplace injuries, whereas in Plant R the organization of work and the rate of workplace injuries showed a more stable pattern. A soIution to the occupational health problem at Plant A has so far proved elusive due to the contradictory interests of labour and management.     

Freedom of association in the Bangladeshi garment industry: A policy schizophrenia in labour regulation

The right to freedom of association is fundamental for the establishment of labour unionism as an institution. While the Government of Bangladesh requires enabling legal provisions for unionization in its garment industry, regulation to ensure the right to freedom of association has proved ineffective in upholding labour unionism. This article highlights the need for legislation capable of drawing on the complementary skills and resources of the Government, factory owners, labour unions and global brands to secure a sustained commitment and contribution towards the socio-economic and political dimensions of labour relations in Bangladesh's ready-made garment industry.     

Constructing markets for temporary labour: employment liberalization and the internationalization of the staffing industry

Abstract Temporary staffing has joined the ranks of the globalizing service industries. The largest agencies have now established a presence in more than sixty nations, where they are placing employees in temporary positions across a range of occupations, from clerical, cleaning and light industrial work through to accountancy, law and IT. The opening up of new occupational and geographical markets around the world has been driven by the imperative to sustain growth in sales volumes, in this business of tight margins and fierce competition. The most lucrative of the staffing industry's ‘emerging markets’ are found in the actively deregulating economies of the global North ‐ including Spain, Germany, Italy and Japan. While exploring how the staffing industry has been active in the construction of these markets, we argue that this fast‐growing business has become an important agent of labour market liberalization.     

Labour surplus and local labour markets in the Nova Scotia fish processing industry

Nous Ctudions ici la relation capitalhravail dans l'industrie de traitement dPoisson, bas6e sur la taille des entreprises: nous distinguons entre Gtablissements petits, competitifs, et grands, ainsi que les situations de travail la piece. Et nous montrons en quoi cette typologie est utile a la comprChension des chaines de production et des patterns de mise en marche. Deuxikmement, nous examinons les effets des rGgimes de travail sur le proces de travail lui-mime, sur la division du travail, et sur la nature des activitCs syndicales. Nous soulignons tout particulierement l'influence profonde du sexe sur les programmes de production saisonniers, a forte composante de main d'oeuvre. Troisiemement, nous montrons qu'en Nouvelle Ecosse I'industrie de traitement du Poisson est constituie de trois marches du travail sous-rkgionaux, en interaction complexe avec la taille de I'Ctablissement, la prCsence de syndicats et le sexe; la structure salariale de l'industrie est le produit de ces interactions. Nous suggerons aussi que les differences entre march& du travail sous-rCgionaux contribuent B expliquer la variabilite de la propension isous-contracter et engager des travailleurs/euses a la piece. operations found among small, competitive, and large establishments, as well as in piecework situations. We then show how this typology informs our understanding of production lines and marketing patterns. Second, we discuss the effects of labour systems on the work process itself, the division of labour, and the nature of union activity. In particular, we emphasize the pervasive influence of gender differences on labour intensive, seasonal production schedules. Third, we describe the Nova Scotian fish processing industry as having three distinct sub-regional labour markets which interact in complex ways with plant type, union presence, and gender to account for wage structures. We also indicate that contrasts among sub-regional labour markets can be important in explaining how plants contract work out to feeder plants or to pieceworkers.uPoisson en Nouvelle-Ecosse. Nous Ctablissons d'abord une typologie des usines de traitement du This paper examines the interrelationship between capital and labour in the Nova Scotia fish processing industry. We first develop a fish plant typology based on the scale of     

Job security, unionisation, wages and privatisation: a case study in the Turkish cement industry

In the recent years, many studies have dealt with the economic aspects of privatisation both in developing and developed countries. There is, however, a lack of systematic enquiries into employees’ opinions about privatisation, albeit a number of claims have been advanced about the impact of privatisation upon the political attitudes of employees, and about its effects on employment relations. This article aims to contribute to filling this gap by analysing employees’ attitudes towards the effects of privatisation on their job security, unionisation and wages. The study is based upon field-work conducted in the Turkish cement industry in 1996, and the research covers 150 employees. The findings of the research hardly support the idea put forward by the new right that privatisation would undermine the class contradictions between bourgeoisie and proletariat (Heller, 1984; Vickers and Yarrow, 1988).     

Beyond development impact: gender and care in the Pacific Seasonal Worker Programme

ABSTRACT

Close to 17,320 workers participate in the Seasonal Worker Programme, a temporary migration scheme between Australia and selected island countries in the Pacific. This article looks at the ways in which seasonal migration affects the social lives of migrants from Tonga and Vanuatu, in their households and communities. It explores the various barriers that women face as a result of this scheme, highlighting, in particular, imbalances in the gendered division of labour caused by the absence of males due to migration. It argues that focusing solely on the economic development discourse of seasonal labour programmes is problematic because it fails to take into account the normative dynamics and general context of seasonal workers. Such an approach also fails to take into consideration the rights of migrants to live with their families, and not to have to make choices that are shaped by physical separation from their families and communities. The article concludes with recommendations for policy reform that address the existing gender inequalities of seasonal worker programmes in the Pacific by putting work, care, and the everyday maintenance of the seasonal worker household at the centre of its analysis.     

建筑业劳务用工制度改革初探

建筑业用工制度改革的目的在于建立能够满足弹性需求的劳务队伍.针对目前成建制劳务用工模式尚处于起步阶段的现状,现阶段劳务用工组织形式改革的重点应当是大力收编、改造非成建制劳务队伍,发展、壮大建筑劳务分包企业,推广建立成建制的劳务用工模式.