The Trauma of a Non-Traumatic Decline

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (2-2018) ◽  
pp. 53-66
Author(s):  
Irene Díaz Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Social Bonds ◽  
Mining Industry ◽  
Coal Industry ◽  
The Other ◽  
Cultural Trauma ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
Labour Movement ◽  
The One ◽  
Post Industrial

Based on interviews conducted in the 1990s, the early 2000s and, again, since 2013, this article discusses views on deindustrialisation in the Asturian coalfields. While the historical experience of the Asturian miners has been shaped by forms of workers’ radicalism and their Anti-Francoist resistance, the conflicts around the shrinking of the coal industry have taken on a paradoxical outlook. On the one hand, the labour movement, and the trade unions in particular, have succeeded in securing measures to ease the transition into a post-industrial period. On the other hand, these measures are almost perceived as a “shameful victory”. Some aspects of this antagonist perception will be addressed in the following. This concerns the emotional attachment to the experiences and social bonds linked to working in the now obsolete coal mining industry. At the same time, the instruments of social security to help the miners master the crisis lead to almost contentious constellations with a younger generation that is facing severe unemployment. Thus, the aim of preventing deindustrialization from becoming a cultural trauma is therefore a difficult task in practice.

scholarly journals “Pulled Apart, Pushed Together”

2005 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 769-792 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Brookes ◽  
Timothy Hinks ◽  
Geoffrey Wood ◽  
Pauline Dibben ◽  
Ian Roper
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Organizational Capacity ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
The Other ◽  
Labour Movement ◽  
Economic Context ◽  
Vertical Linkages ◽  
Racial Lines ◽  
The One

This is a study of horizontal and vertical solidarity within a national labour movement, based on a nationwide survey of members of affiliated unions of the Congress of South African Trade Unions. On the one hand, the survey reveals relatively high levels of vertical and horizontal solidarity, despite the persistence of some cleavages on gender and racial lines. On the other hand, the maintenance and deepening of existing horizontal and vertical linkages in a rapidly changing socio-economic context, represents one of many challenges facing organized labour in an industrializing economy. COSATU’s strength is contingent not only on an effective organizational capacity, and a supportive network linking key actors and interest groupings, but also on the ability to meet the concerns of existing constituencies and those assigned to highly marginalized categories of labour.

scholarly journals The workers of the Donbas coal mines in the post reform period

2019 ◽  
pp. 15-20
Author(s):  
І.В. Довжук
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Child Labor ◽  
High Growth ◽  
High Growth Rate ◽  
Coal Industry ◽  
The Other ◽  
Donets Basin ◽  
Reform Period ◽  
The One ◽  
Intensive Development

The article deals with the problems of providing labor in the coalmines of the Donets Basin in the post reform period. Attention is drawn to the use of female and child labor in the production process, and the conditions under which this happened are being ascertained. It is noted that the intensive development of the coal industry in the 1880-1890s led, on the one hand, to a high growth rate in the number of workers employed in coal mining, and on the other, it exacerbated the deficit of this category of workers. Gradually, with the development of industry in the region, a constant contingent of miners took shape.  As a result, the so-called mining families began to form in the coal industry of Donbass, which later became a tangible source of replenishing the ranks of workers.

South African Economy: No Easy Life Ahead

2015 ◽  
pp. 104-116
Author(s):  
P. Mozias
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Interest Rates ◽  
South African ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Current Account Deficit ◽  
National Development ◽  
Capital Inflows ◽  
The Other ◽  
The One

South African rand depreciated in 2013–2014 under the influence of a number of factors. Internationally, its weakness was associated with the capital outflow from all emerging markets as a result of QE’s tapering in the US. Domestically, rand plummeted because of the deterioration of the macroeconomic stance of South Africa itself: economic growth stalled and current account deficit widened again. Consumer spending was restrained with the high household indebtedness, investment climate worsened with the wave of bloody strikes, and net export was still prone to J-curve effect despite the degree of the devaluation happened. But, in its turn, those problems are a mere reflection of the deep institutional misbalances inherent to the very model of the national economy. Saving rate is too low in South Africa. This leads not only to an insufficient investment, but also to trade deficits and overdependence on speculative capital inflows. Extremely high unemployment means that the country’s economic potential is substantially underutilized. Joblessness is generated, first and foremost, by the dualistic structure of the national entrepreneurship. Basic wages are being formed by way of a bargaining between big public and semi state companies, on the one hand, and trade unions associated with the ruling party, on the other. Such a system is biased towards protection of vested interests of those who earn money in capital-intensive industries. At the same time, these rates of wages are prohibitively high for a small business; so far private companies tend to avoid job creation. A new impulse to economic development is likely to emerge only through the government’s efforts to mitigate disproportions and to pursue an active industrial policy. National Development Plan adopted in 2012 is a practical step in that direction. But the growth of public investment is constrained by a necessity of fiscal austerity; as a result, the budget deficit remained too large in recent years. South African Reserve Bank will have to choose between a stimulation of economic growth with low interest rates, on the one hand, and a support of rand by tightening of monetary policy, on the other. This dilemma will greatly influence prices of securities and yields at South African financial markets.

Odnajdując i tracąc miejsce. Łódzki underground wobec doświadczenia miejskiej codzienności.

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (26) ◽  
pp. 188-203
Author(s):  
Błażej Filanowski
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Graphic Design ◽  
The Other ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Industrial City ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
The One ◽  
Post Industrial

The Łódź underground had emerged from the punk aesthetic, yet it absorbed successive genres surprisingly quickly: hardcore, industrial, later also, among others, techno and rave. It utilized diverse forms of expression: most of all sound, but also projections, site-specific actions, graphic design or fashion. The article, drawing from the memories and output of several most important participants of the movement, poses the question, in what way the underground so easily absorbed new genres and aesthetic patterns on the one hand, while on the other – it remained so strongly separate. The separation is revealed in the tension between experiencing new, experimenting musical and aesthetic trends, and the overwhelming everyday life of the post-industrial city. This tension was the reason why the underground movement was so intensely performative in its character, in which new knowledge and new inspirations were mostly created in action.

scholarly journals Gender stereotypes in translation: stylistic perspective

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Behavior ◽  
Gender Stereotypes ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
The Other ◽  
Literary Translation ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
Cultural Phenomenon ◽  
Gender Perceptions ◽  
The One ◽  
Standardized Formula

The article focuses on the means of gender stereotype verbalization in the English-Ukrainian literary translation. Within the framework of the study, gender is represented as a social and cultural phenomenon which, on the one hand, is constructed in the course of interaction with the reality, on the other hand, it is spread in time and space through language. Recurrent characteristics which are traditionally regarded as feminine/masculine lead to the emergence of stereotypes associated with a certain gender. The stereotypical perceptions turn into the mechanisms of human behavior regulation which determine actions, words, position in the society to be expected from a man/woman. However, various cultural environments are capable of different gender conceptualization due to discrepancies in the historical experience, even geographical location or dominant religion. Consequently, the translator may face difficulties related to the cleavage between the characteristics forming the stereotype in the interacting cultures, including cases when such features vary in their intensity. The presence of fixed gender perceptions entails the emergence of standardized formula for their verbalization, conventional metaphors, epithets, etc. In a broader sense, every linguistic choice of the author which determines the construction of gender for all the characters is relevant for the translator whose task consists in coherent reproduction of every aspect of their personality. Meanwhile, the manifestations of feminine/masculine characteristics in the representatives of a certain gender, that are considered completely natural for one linguistic and cultural community, can prove unusual or even unacceptable. The stylistic presentation of the text, thus, becomes a powerful instrument allowing the translator to manipulate the original and the subtlest shades of meanings embedded by the author to meet the needs and, to a certain extent, expectations of the target audience, while the translator’s interference remains almost imperceptible. Still, considering all the similarities of the source and target cultures, the translator may produce a more vivid message in the target text or, on the contrary, blur some of the author’s ideas through the stylistic devices he/she employs.

Post-socialist labour and the dual logic of collective action: workers’ unrest and trade union strategy in Fiat Automobiles Serbia

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 415-430
Author(s):  
Francesco Bagnardi ◽  
Valentina Petrović
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
The Other ◽  
Structural Constraints ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Assembly Plant ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Plant Level ◽  
The One

In this article we examine the episode of labour discontent that occurred at the Fiat-Chrysler assembly plant in Kragujevac, Serbia, in the summer of 2017. The article traces the process through which the two main trade unions organised and channelled labour unrest at the plant level. Drawing on Offe and Wiesenthal’s conceptualisation of workers’ collective action dilemma, the case highlights the trade-off between on the one hand the need for institutional legitimation and on the other hand responsiveness to workers’ demands. We attempt to show that unions still have space in which to represent workers’ interests effectively when disputes emerge, regardless of unfavourable structural constraints and legacies. The article shows that not even traditionally non-conflictual and legacy unions can be fully sheltered from democratic pressures from workers and competitor organisations. Therefore, the ability to mediate between democratic and bureaucratic logics of action and legitimation remains crucial for any union and determines unions’ ability to represent effectively the interests of labour. Dans cet article, les auteurs examinent l’épisode de mécontentement des travailleurs qui s’est produit à l’usine d’assemblage Fiat-Chrysler à Kragujevac, en Serbie, à l’été 2017. L’article retrace le processus par lequel les deux principaux syndicats ont organisé et canalisé les conflits de travail au niveau de l’usine. En se fondant sur la conceptualisation développée par Offe et Wiesenthal du choix de l’action collective des travailleurs, ce cas met en évidence le compromis entre, d’une part, le besoin de légitimation institutionnelle et, d’autre part, la capacité à répondre aux demandes des travailleurs. Les auteurs tentent de montrer que les syndicats disposent encore de l’espace nécessaire pour représenter efficacement les intérêts des travailleurs lorsque des conflits surgissent, indépendamment des contraintes structurelles et de l’héritage défavorables qui leur ont été laissés. Cet article montre que même les syndicats traditionnellement non conflictuels et ceux issus du passé ne peuvent pas être totalement à l’abri des pressions démocratiques des travailleurs et des organisations concurrentes. Par conséquent, la capacité de médiation entre les logiques démocratiques et bureaucratiques de l’action et de la légitimation demeure primordiale pour tout syndicat et détermine la capacité des syndicats à représenter efficacement les intérêts des travailleurs. Im vorliegenden Artikel untersuchen wir die Auseinandersetzungen zwischen der Belegschaft und der Unternehmensleitung im Fiat-Chrysler-Montagewerk in Kragujevac, Serbien im Sommer 2017. Der Artikel zeichnet nach, wie die beiden großen betrieblich vertretenen Gewerkschaften die Unzufriedenheit der Arbeitnehmer auf der Werksebene kanalisiert und organisiert haben. Unter Bezugnahme auf Offes und Wiesenthals Konzeptualisierung des Dilemmas des kollektiven Handelns von Arbeitnehmern ist dieser Fall symptomatisch für den Zielkonflikt zwischen der Notwendigkeit institutioneller Legitimation einerseits und dem Reaktionsvermögen auf Forderungen von Arbeitnehmern andererseits. Wir versuchen nachzuweisen, dass Gewerkschaften nach wie vor Handlungsspielräume haben, um in Konfliktfällen Arbeitnehmerinteressen ungeachtet struktureller Einschränkungen und Altlasten effektiv zu vertreten. Der Artikel zeigt, dass nicht einmal traditionell konsensorientierte Gewerkschaften und Rechtsnachfolger der früheren sozialistischen Gewerkschaften umfassend vor demokratisch legitimiertem Druck von Arbeitnehmern und Mitbewerberorganisationen geschützt werden können. Die Fähigkeit, zwischen demokratischer und bürokratischer Handlungslogik und Legitimation vermitteln zu können, ist deshalb für alle Gewerkschaften von entscheidender Bedeutung und bestimmt ihre Fähigkeit, die Interessen von Arbeitnehmern wirksam zu vertreten.

Theban Myth in Virgil's Aeneid: The Brothers at War

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-125
Author(s):  
Stefano Rebeggiani
Keyword(s):  
The State ◽  
The Other ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
The One ◽  
Character Types

This article offers a thorough study of Virgil's interaction with the myth of Eteocles and Polynices' war for the throne of Thebes, as represented especially in Athenian tragedy. It demonstrates that allusions to the Theban myth are crucial to the Aeneid's construction of a set of tensions and oppositions that play an important role in Virgil's reflection on the historical experience of Rome, especially in connection with the transition from Republic to Empire. In particular, interaction with Theban stories allows Virgil to explore: (1) the dichotomy between similarity and foreignness in the depiction of Rome's enemies; (2) the tension in differing attitudes towards the state as reflected in antithetical character types—namely, the selfless youth who sacrifices himself for the community and the would-be tyrant prepared to go to any lengths to achieve sole power; and, finally, (3) the dichotomy between opposing notions of time defined by teleology, on the one hand, and circularity and repetition on the other, the two representing the differing temporalities of epic and tragedy, respectively.

Who bears the burden of flexibility? Working conditions and labour markets in the European retail trade

2002 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 504-520 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florence Jany-Catrice ◽  
Steffen Lehndorff
Keyword(s):  
Working Conditions ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Labour Supply ◽  
Retail Trade ◽  
The Other ◽  
Development Work ◽  
Current Development ◽  
Existing Structures ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
The One

The retail trade is currently undergoing fundamental changes in terms of employment, working time, and working conditions, all of which deserve detailed analysis. The present study is focussed on the interaction between efforts of large retail firms at ‘flexibilising’ their workforces on the one hand, and on the existing structures of labour supply on the other. The main result of the study is a sceptical assessment of the current development: work in the retail trade is becoming more stressful and less attractive, and the share of those to whom it serves as the basis for an independent livelihood is decreasing. The labour market in this industry is undergoing major changes in Europe. This state of affairs presents trade unions with extremely intricate challenges, the form of which varies considerably from one country to another.

Guida alla lettura della recente legge di riforma della democrazia sindacale in Francia: piena compatibilitŕ fra regolamentazione della contrattazione collettiva e principio del pluralismo sindacale

2009 ◽  
pp. 365-381
Author(s):  
Ilario Alvino
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Key Words ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
The Other ◽  
Work Place ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Freedom Of Association ◽  
The One

- The Author reviews the new French Law n. 2008-789, which introduces new considerable elements concerning the representativity of trade unions, the conditions of a regular collective bargaining, the establishment of specific structures of workers' representatives at the work place. On the one hand, the Author takes into consideration the differences between the Italian legal system and the French one, on the other hand, the reform process that brought into the introduction of new rules.Key words: France; Trade Union; Representativity; Collective bargaining; Freedom of association; Social dialogue.Parole chiave: Francia; sindacato; rappresentativitŕ; contratto collettivo; libertŕ sindacale; dialogo sociale.

From Red to Black

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Messer-Kruse
Keyword(s):  
Social Theory ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Class Struggle ◽  
The Other ◽  
Industrial Change ◽  
Mob Violence ◽  
Steady Growth ◽  
Socialist Movement ◽  
The One ◽  
Fundamental Shift

This chapter looks back to how, over the course of a decade, Chicago's “communists” had gone from counseling their followers to avoid violent confrontations to planning them. This evolution of tactics rested on an even more fundamental shift in outlook and social theory. In 1877 when leaders of the Workingmen's Party acted to restrain mob violence, they did so in the belief that industrial change would come about through the steady growth of trade unions and the gradual raising of the working class's consciousness. But in 1886 the men in Greif's basement were skeptical that trade unions could ever deliver more than a few extra crumbs to the workingman's table and had come to believe that workers were ready for violent class struggle. Between the one outlook and the other was a wholesale shift in the socialist movement that began in Europe and swept into America.

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