{"title":"Review of: Michael D. Yates (2018) Can the Working Class Change the World?","authors":"Fathimah Fildzah Izzati","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I2.4711","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I2.4711","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46221287","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of: Genevieve LeBaron (2019) Researching Forced Labour in the Global Economy: Methodological Challenges and Advances","authors":"Jonelle Humphrey","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I2.4730","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I2.4730","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44302800","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In the 1980s and 1990s, a significant number of rank-and-file trade union activists in Canada became actively engaged in various forms of international labour solidarity. This activity, the end of the Cold War and the increasing impacts of neo-liberal globalisation combined to spark hopes for greatly expanding practices of labour transnationalism. This vision of transnationalising trade union organisation has not materialised and, in fact, inside Canadian unions there has been declining faith in the possibilities of building transnational solidarity. Starting with an analysis of the dominant dichotomies underlying the literature on labour transnationalism, I suggest that stepping outside these dichotomies can provide a different way of assessing the role of transnational labour solidarity within broader struggles for workers’ justice. In this article, drawing upon the case of transnational political solidarities built by workers inside Canadian unions in the 1980s and 1990s, I argue that assessing transnational practices with a longer view to class formation and the goals of workers’ emancipation can help to expand conceptions of what constitutes successful transnational practice. Such a reassessment of the role of labour transnationalism is particularly timely in the current context of right-wing populism.
{"title":"Transnational Labour Solidarity as Transformative Practice: Reframing the Role of Labour Transnationalism","authors":"Katherine Nastovski","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I2.4042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I2.4042","url":null,"abstract":"In the 1980s and 1990s, a significant number of rank-and-file trade union activists in Canada became actively engaged in various forms of international labour solidarity. This activity, the end of the Cold War and the increasing impacts of neo-liberal globalisation combined to spark hopes for greatly expanding practices of labour transnationalism. This vision of transnationalising trade union organisation has not materialised and, in fact, inside Canadian unions there has been declining faith in the possibilities of building transnational solidarity. Starting with an analysis of the dominant dichotomies underlying the literature on labour transnationalism, I suggest that stepping outside these dichotomies can provide a different way of assessing the role of transnational labour solidarity within broader struggles for workers’ justice. In this article, drawing upon the case of transnational political solidarities built by workers inside Canadian unions in the 1980s and 1990s, I argue that assessing transnational practices with a longer view to class formation and the goals of workers’ emancipation can help to expand conceptions of what constitutes successful transnational practice. Such a reassessment of the role of labour transnationalism is particularly timely in the current context of right-wing populism.","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41721168","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of: Marcelo Hoffman (2019) Militant Acts: The Role of Investigations in Radical Politics Struggles","authors":"Jamie Woodcock","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4547","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4547","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49112961","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The automobile industry in China was shaken by an unprecedented upsurge of labour unrest in 2010, beginning with the much-discussed wildcat strike at the Nanhai Honda transmission plant in Guangdong province. While worker activism in auto plants in India was not as concentrated as in China’s 2010 strike wave, the period 2009–2017 witnessed twenty-seven strikes nationwide, indicating a significant uptick after the global recession. The optimism that regarded the escalation of labour unrest as indicative of a global labour movement emerging from the Global South has died down. This is an appropriate moment to ask the question: Why did these protests not materialise into something more? Existing explanations in China tend to focus on the regime characteristics. In this article, we undertake a much-needed comparative analysis to explore the failure of these protests. We argue that their failure to sustain their momentum, let alone become a global movement, must be understood in the context of the structures and temporality of capitalism. While we show that there were regime-based divergences and national characteristics in each case, we also show the striking global convergence both in the ways that the protests materialised and how the states responded. KEYWORDS: labour resistance; temporary work; democracy; neo-liberalism; China; India
{"title":"Regimes, Resistance and Reforms: Comparing Workers' Politics in the Automobile Industry in China and India","authors":"Manjusha Nair, E. Friedman","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4256","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4256","url":null,"abstract":"The automobile industry in China was shaken by an unprecedented upsurge of labour unrest in 2010, beginning with the much-discussed wildcat strike at the Nanhai Honda transmission plant in Guangdong province. While worker activism in auto plants in India was not as concentrated as in China’s 2010 strike wave, the period 2009–2017 witnessed twenty-seven strikes nationwide, indicating a significant uptick after the global recession. The optimism that regarded the escalation of labour unrest as indicative of a global labour movement emerging from the Global South has died down. This is an appropriate moment to ask the question: Why did these protests not materialise into something more? Existing explanations in China tend to focus on the regime characteristics. In this article, we undertake a much-needed comparative analysis to explore the failure of these protests. We argue that their failure to sustain their momentum, let alone become a global movement, must be understood in the context of the structures and temporality of capitalism. While we show that there were regime-based divergences and national characteristics in each case, we also show the striking global convergence both in the ways that the protests materialised and how the states responded.\u0000KEYWORDS: labour resistance; temporary work; democracy; neo-liberalism; China; India","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46247168","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
When it comes to analysing exploitative and unfree labour, most research refers to “othering” or “race”. Race is often treated as a given category rather than a social phenomenon that needs explanation. In this article, I draw attention to the question of how racism is preserved, reproduced and changed within and through unfree labour relations. I do this by discussing the conceptual interlinkages between unfree labour, migration and racism. While the role of migration policies should not be underestimated, this should be accompanied by an analytical account of their racist background and outcomes. Based on this I present a framework for the analysis of racism as it relates to unfree labour and migration. I draw attention to three different levels of analysis (historico-structural, discursive-symbolic and everyday practices) and the interrelations between them. For empirical illustrations, I draw on my research on modern slave labour in two production sectors in Brazil: charcoal and clothing. I discuss the empirical findings with regard to three analytical problems in the analysis of unfree labour and racism: the impact of generalising knowledge on (future) migrant workers; the role and responsibility of global production networks; and the need to critically reflect on initiatives and policies aimed at the eradication of unfree labour. KEYWORDS: labour migration; unfree labour; racism; Brazil; workers’ rights
{"title":"Unfree Labour, Migration and Racism: Towards an Analytical Framework","authors":"Lisa Carstensen","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4159","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4159","url":null,"abstract":"When it comes to analysing exploitative and unfree labour, most research refers to “othering” or “race”. Race is often treated as a given category rather than a social phenomenon that needs explanation. In this article, I draw attention to the question of how racism is preserved, reproduced and changed within and through unfree labour relations. I do this by discussing the conceptual interlinkages between unfree labour, migration and racism. While the role of migration policies should not be underestimated, this should be accompanied by an analytical account of their racist background and outcomes. Based on this I present a framework for the analysis of racism as it relates to unfree labour and migration. I draw attention to three different levels of analysis (historico-structural, discursive-symbolic and everyday practices) and the interrelations between them. For empirical illustrations, I draw on my research on modern slave labour in two production sectors in Brazil: charcoal and clothing. I discuss the empirical findings with regard to three analytical problems in the analysis of unfree labour and racism: the impact of generalising knowledge on (future) migrant workers; the role and responsibility of global production networks; and the need to critically reflect on initiatives and policies aimed at the eradication of unfree labour.\u0000 KEYWORDS: labour migration; unfree labour; racism; Brazil; workers’ rights","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48876336","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of: Marquita R. Walker (2019) Protecting the Workforce: A Defense of Workers' Rights in Global Supply Chains","authors":"M. Naughton","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4552","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4552","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43896385","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of: Phil Taylor and Sian Moore (2019) Cabin Crew Conflict: The British Airways Dispute 2009-11","authors":"Darragh Golden","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4589","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4589","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49122704","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of: Robert O'Brien (2019) Labour Internationalism in the Global South: The SIGTUR Initiative","authors":"Ricardo Framil Filho","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4546","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4546","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41460432","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
On 26 November 2020, ten central trade unions in India went on a nation-wide strike to protest against anti-working-class policies of the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre. Their main grievances were directed towards the recently passed four labour codes and three farm laws, among others. In fact, farmers are currently holding a historic demonstration and have occupied the expressways near the nation’s capital at Singhu, Tikri, Ghazipur and Palwal; they plan to march into the capital on 26 January 2021. It appears then, every section of the working population is opposing the economic policies of the government, which incidentally has resulted in low to negative output growth and an unprecedented surge in open unemployment rates. Although we shall briefly discuss the resistance emerging against the farm laws, our main concern in this article is about the political roots and implications of labour law changes.
{"title":"Labour Reforms in a Neo-liberal Setting: Lessons from India","authors":"A. Roychowdhury, K. Sarkar","doi":"10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4457","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15173/GLJ.V12I1.4457","url":null,"abstract":"On 26 November 2020, ten central trade unions in India went on a nation-wide strike to protest against anti-working-class policies of the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre. Their main grievances were directed towards the recently passed four labour codes and three farm laws, among others. In fact, farmers are currently holding a historic demonstration and have occupied the expressways near the nation’s capital at Singhu, Tikri, Ghazipur and Palwal; they plan to march into the capital on 26 January 2021. It appears then, every section of the working population is opposing the economic policies of the government, which incidentally has resulted in low to negative output growth and an unprecedented surge in open unemployment rates. Although we shall briefly discuss the resistance emerging against the farm laws, our main concern in this article is about the political roots and implications of labour law changes.","PeriodicalId":44737,"journal":{"name":"Global Labour Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44427194","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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