Can private sector unions survive in Great Britain?
How can unions respond to the challenges posted by performace-related pay, public-private partnerships and the internet?
What lessons can be learned from trade unions' experience in Germany and the US?
"Trade Unions: Resurgence or Decline?" is the third book in the innovative "Trade Unions in Britain" series. Featuring substantial and original research, this book takes a hard disciplinary approach--economics, organizational theory, history and social psychology--to offer readers a comprehensive analysis of unions' prospects in the new millenium. Case studies deal with such topical issues such as unions and the gender pay gap, the private finance initiative, performance-related pay and the unions' use of the internet.
Written by many of the leading scholars on British unions, this book highlights union prospects--survival or resurgence?--and has important policy implications for all parties to industrial relations: unions, employers and government.

Trade unions in Europe are currently facing a series of challenges that stem from changes to regulatory and production regimes implemented by the state and employers, in order to compete in an increasingly internationalized economy. In response to these challenges, trade union movements have been dramatically restructuring; long-standing principles of organization have been jettisoned in an attempt to develop new structures. Central to this process of structural adaptation are the mergers of trade unions. This informative book focuses on the merger process in Britain and Germany and, uniquely, it reviews the wider implications of these developments - particularly for North America. As well as addressing the reasons for mergers, the book also examines the process whereby mergers are concluded, investigates the consequences, and analyses the costs and benefits of the post-merger organisation. Drawing on interviews conducted with senior policy-makers engaged in merger processes, this book explores the extent of internal union reform brought about by the merger process, and also identifies the implications of this reform for trade unions world-wide. Structured in distinct sections, this book covers topic such as: what distinguishes the British and German systems? trade union structures pre-merger issues settling the terms of the mergers post-merger developments. This book forms part of the Routledge Research in Employment Relations series featuring works of high academic merit drawn from a wide range of academic studies in the social sciences. It is a valuable resource for postgraduate students studying business and management, industrial employee relations, and trade unions.

Examining the traditionally predominant role of the state in shaping employment patterns and social policy in France, French Industrial Relations in the New World Economy analyzes the impact of globalization on French industrial relations.

Looking at the changing economic context of industrial relations, this important text places particular emphasis on the notion of a shift from a national, Fordist form of employment regulation, to an international, post-Fordist form - examining in detail the impact of this shift on the role of the French state and on the balance of power between employer and trade union organizations.

Including chapters on employer organizations, collective bargaining, the role of the state, and workplace representation, French Industrial Relations in the New World Economy explores this fascinating topic in detail and provides a detailed resource for postgraduates studying trade unions, industrial and employee relations, and industrial studies in general.

In "American Labor and American Democracy," William English Walling drew on his close association with Samuel Gompers and other leaders of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) to write the authoritative history of the labor movement in the first quarter of the twentieth century. Walling's position was that twentieth-century American democracy was not stagnant. It was a living, developing trend in society, with the AFL as its most progressive force. There could be no passive acceptance of American institutions as they stood: government in the twentieth century would need to develop into a medium for attaining social ideals and needs beyond individual realization. The aim of American labor was a pluralistic economic democracy in which government and industry would be guided by economic organizations representing not only labor, but every essential social group. Richard Schneirov, in his introduction to this new edition of a classic book, paints a rich and detailed picture of Walling's political and intellectual journey, and of his many contributions to the synthesis of democratic and socialist principles. "American Labor and American Democracy" is an important work that will help reevaluate our understanding of labor and working-class history, establish a new perspective on today's labor movement, and shed light on the relationship of labor to socialism, capitalism, democracy, and social movements; the nature of the large business corporation; and the relationship of special interest groups to democracy. William English Walling (1877-1936) was a social reform activist who helped found the National Women's Trade Union League in 1903 and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in 1909. He authored several influential works, including "Socialism as it Is: A Survey of the World-Wide Revolutionary Movement," "The Larger Aspects of Socialism," "Progessivism and After," and "The Socialists and the War." Richard Schneirov is professor of history at Indiana State University, and has also taught at The Ohio State University and the Institut f3r England und Amerikastudien at the University of Frankfurt, Germany. He is the author of "Labor and Urban Politics: Class Conflict and the Origins of Modern Liberalism in Chicago, 1864-97," which was awarded the Urban History Association's prize for best urban history in North America for 1998 and co-edited "The Pullman Strike and the Crisis of the 1890s."

U.S. labor leaders are constantly developing new programs to revive the union movement. What happens when these plans collide with the daily lives of front-line union staff and members? This book examines the often conflicting interests of key players in the trenches of a national effort to bring back the U.S. labor movement.Brutally honest, funny, and never dull, this anthropological ethnography shows the daily struggles of union members today to bring about positive change and hold together their urban labor union in an era of globalization, outsourcing, and deindustrialization.The authors, a union activist and an anthropologist respectively, pair up to offer insider views of labor unions "and" of how anthropological fieldwork is done. Explaining, coaching, and warning Paul of hazards, Suzan, the communications director for the local union, provides inside views and details of day-to-day interactions. Paul, the anthropologist, provides outside analytical views that relate Suzan's experiences and his own observations to the wider view anthropology offers through the lenses of ethnography, holism, and comparativism. The result is a story of one dynamic union local, one anthropological study, and the lit fuse that connects them until the end.

U.S. labor leaders are constantly developing new programs to revive the union movement. What happens when these plans collide with the daily lives of front-line union staff and members? This book examines the often conflicting interests of key players in the trenches of a national effort to bring back the U.S. labor movement.Brutally honest, funny, and never dull, this anthropological ethnography shows the daily struggles of union members today to bring about positive change and hold together their urban labor union in an era of globalization, outsourcing, and deindustrialization.The authors, a union activist and an anthropologist respectively, pair up to offer insider views of labor unions "and" of how anthropological fieldwork is done. Explaining, coaching, and warning Paul of hazards, Suzan, the communications director for the local union, provides inside views and details of day-to-day interactions. Paul, the anthropologist, provides outside analytical views that relate Suzan's experiences and his own observations to the wider view anthropology offers through the lenses of ethnography, holism, and comparativism. The result is a story of one dynamic union local, one anthropological study, and the lit fuse that connects them until the end.

This title was first published in 2001. Detailed interviews with activists and case studies of decision-making bodies show how different membership groups exploit equal opportunities strategies to facilitate or impede women. These case studies expose the conundrum of understanding women as a differentiated but distinct membership group. They illustrate why women activists need to be understood in their diverse and multiple roles of being low paid workers, black women, lesbians and members of political parties, but also demonstrate that women are most empowered when treated as an oppressed social group.

The second in The Future of Trade Unions in Britain series, this book covers the variety of ways in which unions are trying to revitalize themselves. There is a strong emphasis on organizing new workplaces and fresh evidence on the responses of employers to union presence. The impact of partnerships with employers, both in private and public sectors, is explored and so too are union innovations in structure, including use of the internet. An exciting new contribution.

The second in The Future of Trade Unions in Britain series, this book covers the variety of ways in which unions are trying to revitalize themselves. There is a strong emphasis on organizing new workplaces and fresh evidence on the responses of employers to union presence. The impact of partnerships with employers, both in private and public sectors, is explored and so too are union innovations in structure, including use of the internet. An exciting new contribution.

With the trend toward multinational corporations, free trade pacts and dismantling import barriers, organized labour has been steadily losing ground in the United States. To reverse this trend, this book argues that US unions must create ties with unions in other countries.

This work examines the responses of unions and workers to regional integration and restructuring in the automobile industry in North and Central America. The focus is on the automobile industry in Mexico, which, because of its size and importance, is viewed as a strategic sector of the Mexican economy and was the focal point of talks between the US, Canada and Mexico during negotiations on NAFTA. Focusing on the period from 1980, John P. Tuman examines the changes implemented by firms to promote export production, he explores reasons for the variation in labour responses to restructuring, and he discusses the prospects for cross-border organizing and co-operation among automobile workers in Canada, the US and Mexico.

This timely new study of worker representation presents powerful analysis of such issues as:

· trends in trade union membership;
· factors behind the decline of union membership;
· young workers and trade unionism;
· the law and union recognition;
· European influences on worker representation;
· non-union representation;
· trade unionism in the context of new forms of representation;
· enhancing the appeal of unions.

Representing Workers is one of the most broad-ranging studies of representation and is essential reading for anyone studying or working in employment relations.

This timely new study of worker representation presents powerful analysis of such issues as:

· trends in trade union membership;
· factors behind the decline of union membership;
· young workers and trade unionism;
· the law and union recognition;
· European influences on worker representation;
· non-union representation;
· trade unionism in the context of new forms of representation;
· enhancing the appeal of unions.

Representing Workers is one of the most broad-ranging studies of representation and is essential reading for anyone studying or working in employment relations.

This comprehensive survey of continuity and change in trade unions looks at five primarily English-speaking countries: the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. The authors consider the recent re-examination by trade union movements of the basis of union organization and activity in the face of a harsher economic and political climate. One of the impetuses for this re-examination has been the recent history of unions in the USA. American models of renewal have inspired Australia, New Zealand and the UK, while Canada has undergone a cautious examination of the US model with an attempt to develop a distinctive approach. This book aims to provide a thorough grounding for informed discussion and debate about the position and place of trade unions in modern economies.

After many years of indifferent decline, trade union membership is now being revitalised. Strategies known as union organizing are being used to recruit and re-energize unions around the globe. This book considers exactly how trade unions are working to do this and provides a much needed evaluation of these rebuilding strategies.
By comparing historical and contemporary case-studies to assess the impact of various organizing campaigns, Union Organizing assess the progress of unions across Europe and America. It raises key debates about the organizing culture and considers the impact of recent union recognition laws on employers and the government's Fairness at Work policy.

This book makes a major contribution to the debate within the UK and abroad on the reality of workplace unionism in an era of change. Drawing on examples of union renewal, the authors present an historical overview, and compare the UK experience with contrasting international examples. It presents both qualitative and quantitative research to provide new and comprehensive evidence on trade union strategies.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203167392

Trade Unions and European Integration brings together pessimists and optimists on trade unionism under the contemporary pressures of European integration. The Great Recession has brought new attention to structural problems of the European integration process, specifically monetary integration; holding the potential of disabling any trans-national co-ordination. Other authors argue that the current crisis also poses the chance for mobilization and new impulses for European trade unionism. This is discussed in the volume alongside a variety of topics including bargaining coordination, co-determination, European governance regimes, and European wide mobilization. While the importance of the question of how trade unionism and wage policy can, will, and should develop under the conditions of European integration seems widely shared, the polarization of the debate itself deserves our attention to learn about the opposing arguments and points of view; and to enhance academic discussion as well as consultancy to policy makers. This volume addresses this debate by bringing together the most distinguished voices and searching for common ground as well as new perspectives on European trade unionism and collective bargaining. The chapters of the volume, organised topically, are each accompanied by a comment from a distinguished scholar, highlighting the divisions of the debate. With this innovative approach, this book advances the dialogue between what have become openly opposed camps of optimists and pessimists on the future of European integration, trade unionism and its future chances. Trade Unions and European Integration will appeal to students and researchers interested in fields such as European Studies, Industrial Relations, Political Economics, Social Movements and Sociology of Work.

As the world economy is liberalized, and national economies become more intertwined, the national decision making of states is also increasingly interdependent, and it has become vital for non-governmental organizations to create an international agenda. This title is an important study of what makes such organizations successful on an international level. The focus is on trade unions, as a key international group of NGOs. It asks whether a global system can be designed to stimulate countries to observe a set of minimum or core standards. It explores three important questions: how have unions attempted to influence the debate on the inclusion of minumum labour standards in the WTO agreement?; what accounts for their success or lack of success?; and what conclusions, with respect to the effective behaviour of trade unions in the construction of international policy, can be drawn from these experiences? In exploring these questions the text looks at social clause debates within a number of international bodies: the ILO, OECD and the EU, and within two countries: the USA and India.

Trade union movements in many countries face uncertain futures. After three decades of extensive economic restructuring at both national and international levels, often accompanied by major legislative reforms, the way forward for unions is unclear. Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, in most developed economies, union membership declined massively and union leaders and their members lost their former prominence and their place in the polity. Will trade unions be able to re-establish their past salience in the bargaining arena and in the polity? Or, given the uncertainties of internationalized economies and states, will the first decade of this new century see further declines in union strength and power? This book examines these and related questions by exploring the background, current roles and prospects of trade unions in six English-speaking countries.

Trade union movements in many countries face uncertain futures. After three decades of extensive economic restructuring at both national and international levels, often accompanied by major legislative reforms, the way forward for unions is unclear. Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, in most developed economies, union membership declined massively and union leaders and their members lost their former prominence and their place in the polity. Will trade unions be able to re-establish their past salience in the bargaining arena and in the polity? Or, given the uncertainties of internationalized economies and states, will the first decade of this new century see further declines in union strength and power? This book examines these and related questions by exploring the background, current roles and prospects of trade unions in six English-speaking countries.

How can American unions survive in our increasingly globalized business environment? With the trend toward multinational corporations, free trade pacts, and dismantling import barriers, organized labor has been steadily losing ground in the United States. This book argues that to reverse this trend, U.S. unions must create ties with workers and unions in other countries, and include the ever-increasing number of immigrant workers in their ranks. And it calls for a shift toward "social movement unionism, " which would change unions' orientation from exclusively market-focused and more toward social issues and rights.

The pressures of globalization and diversity are increasingly requiring organizations to rethink their priorities and methods. In this collection, leading researchers examine the debates and developments on gender, diversity and democracy in trade unions in eleven countries.
Offering an authoritative basis for comparative analysis, this book is essential reading for researchers, teachers, trade unionists and students of industrial relations and equal opportunities, along with all those concerned with ensuring that modern organizations reflect and represent the needs and concerns of a diverse workforce.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203165756

In his original book on CyberUnions, Shostak presented a bold plan for unions to develop a more significant role in the 21st century by adopting four strategic aids -- futuristics, innovations, services, and traditions (F-I-S-T) -- knit together by cutting-edge InfoTech resources. The CyberUnion Handbook expands on the F-I-S-T model with practical, how-to information and advice on every aspect of using technology to advance Labor's interests. It looks at gains and setbacks in pioneering efforts to create CyberUnions, highlights relevant websites, and includes interviews with key CyberUnion advocates. The book also reviews overseas efforts for transferable lessons, and pays special attention to the AFL-CIO campaign to ensure Labor's advances in the use of InfoTech.

A study of the long-term decline of the labour movement in America, exploring the outlook for labour and unions in the 21st century. There are insights from contributors from a range of backgrounds - academic and non-academic, domestic and foreign, pro- and anti-union.

A study of the long-term decline of the labour movement in America, exploring the outlook for labour and unions in the 21st century. There are insights from contributors from a range of backgrounds - academic and non-academic, domestic and foreign, pro- and anti-union.