An Experimental Organization of Precarious Professionals

2021 ◽  
Vol 88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian MacDonald ◽  
Manek Kolhatkar
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
Professional Identification ◽  
Relations Industrielles

This article discusses the sector-wide organization of contractual archaeologists in Québec, beginning with the formation of a workers’ committee and leading subsequently to union accreditation. We theorize the difficulty of organizing these “precarious professionals” and suggest that self-organization outside of an industrial relations framework may be required to overcome barriers to their unionization. Deliberation, norm setting, and informal parlays with employers lead to clarifying class distinctions that professional identification often occludes, while self-organization increases worker confidence in collective action.   Cet article traite de l’organisation sectorielle des archéologues contractuels au Québec en commençant par la création d’un comité de travailleurs et menant par la suite à l’accréditation syndicale. Nous mettons en théorie les difficultés qui ont entravé l’organisation de ces «professionnels précaires», et proposons que l’auto-organisation en dehors d’un cadre de relations industrielles peut être nécessaire pour surmonter les obstacles à leur syndicalisation. La délibération, l’établissement des normes et les discussions avec les employeurs conduisent à clarifier les distinctions de classe que l’identification professionnelle occulte souvent, tandis que l’auto-organisation augmente la confiance des travailleurs dans l’action collective.

scholarly journals Young Workers’ Perceptions of Trade Unions in Portugal

2017 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 574-595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilona Kovács ◽  
João Dias ◽  
Maria da Conceição Cerdeira
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Structural Factors ◽  
Young Workers ◽  
Family Status ◽  
Skilled Workers ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
High Concentration

This paper seeks to capture how unions are perceived by young workers in Portugal and to identify different types of perceptions. Our analysis considers both structural factors and subjective experiences and is based on semi-structured interviews with young people working in sectors with a high concentration of youth employment. The fact that young workers are increasingly exposed to the pressures of unemployment and precarious work might suggest that there is homogeneity in their perceptions about trade unions and collective action. However, our results show that young workers’ perceptions are not homogenous and that they interconnect with distinct segments, characterized by different socio-economic conditions, as defined by family status, education level and position in the labour market. Three types of perceptions were identified by content analysis of the interviews: positive, negative and critical perceptions. A final segment of younger and less-skilled workers, of families with low educational and economic resources and having left school prematurely, have neither information nor any understanding about unions. Our findings support the thesis that diversity of educational and early labour market experiences, which characterize transition processes to adulthood, shape the relation between young workers and unions, in particular the motivation to join unions. Capturing the diversity of young workers experiences and perceptions is a challenge to industrial relations research, as well as to trade unionism. It can provide unions with important insights into how to adapt their strategies to recruit new young members and to mobilize the latent interests of young workers in collective action.

Greek unions' preferences: measuring trends in the field. An exploratory note on the period 2008–2009

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 563-576 ◽  
Author(s):  
Drydakis Nick
Keyword(s):  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Secondary Level ◽  
Employment Level ◽  
Union Model ◽  
Relations Industrielles ◽  
Workforce Reductions ◽  
The Right ◽  
Monopoly Union ◽  
Efficient Bargaining ◽  
Article Analyse

The present research explores union preferences through a survey of the Greek national federations (secondary-level unions) for the period 2008–2009. The evidence presented here suggests that the monopoly-union model does not properly evaluate union–firm reality in Greece. Moreover, the right-to-manage model holds when firms ought to increase employment, while the efficient-bargaining model holds when firms attempt workforce reductions. The study also suggests that most unions place relatively more weight on wage issues than on employment issues, but there is no exclusive preference for wages over employment agreements. Furthermore, the data provide evidence that unions' goals cannot be reduced to a simple trade-off between wages and employment level; rather a range of options, examined by the industrial relations literature, should be taken into account. Cet article analyse les préférences syndicales au travers d’une étude des fédérations nationales grecques (organisations syndicales du second niveau) pendant la période 2008-2009. Les données présentées ici suggèrent que le modèle du monopole syndical ne rend pas compte de manière appropriée de la réalité du syndicalisme d’entreprise en Grèce. Par ailleurs, le modèle du droit à gérer est validé lorsque les entreprises doivent embaucher davantage, alors que le modèle de négociation efficace se trouve confirmé lorsque l’entreprise doit réduire l'emploi. L’étude suggère également que la plupart des syndicats mettent davantage l’accent sur les questions de salaires que sur les questions d'emploi, sans préférence exclusive pour des accords salariaux au détriment d’accords sur l’emploi. Enfin, les données montrent que les objectifs syndicaux ne peuvent être réduits à un simple arbitrage entre niveau des salaires et niveau de l’emploi; il convient de prendre en considération un éventail d’options examinées par la littérature consacrée aux relations industrielles. Dieser Beitrag stützt sich auf eine Untersuchung der gewerkschaftlichen Präferenzen im Rahmen einer Befragung der nationalen Gewerkschaftsverbände in Griechenland, die den Zeitraum 2008-2009 abdeckt. Aus dieser Untersuchung geht hervor, dass das Modell der Monopol-Gewerkschaften die Beziehung zwischen Gewerkschaften und Unternehmen in Griechenland nicht richtig wiedergibt. Das right-to-manage-Modell trifft zu, wenn Unternehmen mehr Arbeitnehmer einstellen, während das efficient-bargaining-Modell zutrifft, wenn sie die Zahl ihrer Arbeitnehmer reduzieren möchten. Die Studie deutet auch darauf hin, dass die meisten Gewerkschaften Lohnfragen relativ gesehen mehr Gewicht beimessen, aber Lohnvereinbarungen nicht grundsätzlich Beschäftigungsvereinbarungen vorziehen. Darüber hinaus zeigen die Ergebnisse der Untersuchung, dass sich die Ziele der Gewerkschaften nicht auf einen einfachen Kompromiss zwischen Löhnen und Beschäftigungsniveau reduzieren lassen. Stattdessen müssen verschiedene Optionen berücksichtigt werden, die in der Fachliteratur zu Fragen der Arbeitsbeziehungen untersucht werden.

scholarly journals Hommage à Pierre Verge (1936–2015)

2015 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-10
Author(s):  
Guylaine Vallée
Keyword(s):  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Relations Industrielles

Avec le décès de Pierre Verge, la revue Relations industrielles/Industrial Relations perd un réputé contributeur et un précieux ami. À la demande de la direction de la revue, la professeure Guylaine Vallée, qui connaît bien l’oeuvre de Pierre Verge et qui a travaillé avec lui, a accepté de rédiger ce texte hommage faisant état de sa contribution à l’avancement du droit de travail et des relations industrielles au Québec et au Canada.

scholarly journals Linkspopulismus und Prekarisierung

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (180) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Goes
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Social Situation ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Precarious Work ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Political Project

In recent years a debate about the possibilities of left wing populism in Germany occurred. Based on own empirical findings about how workers deal with different situations of precarious work this contribution argues, that such a populist project is not only possible but necessary. It is a popular diagnosis among scholars of industrial relations, that the precarisation of work is limiting the possibilities for solidarity and collective action among workers. But as empirical data shows also new perceptions of injustice are arising, which could be used as a starting point for union politics. In the following two different frames of interpretation are reconstructed, which workers apply in order to handle their social situation. Although not without contradictions each entails potentials for a progressive left wing populism. In order to engage with these potentials, it is argued, activists of an antagonistic left should start building a political project, whose possible populist elements are outlined in the conclusions.

scholarly journals THEORETICAL ASPECTS OF CREATING COMMUNITIES BASED ON SUSTAINABLE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE REGION

2018 ◽  
Vol 1(13) (1(13)) ◽  
pp. 105-111
Author(s):  
Olena Krasnonosovа ◽  
Darya Mykhailenko
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
Fiscal Decentralization ◽  
Practical Experience ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
Social Self ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
Socio Economic Development ◽  
Territorial Structure ◽  
Economic Studies

Current socio-economic studies convince of the increase of irrational using available resources and growing social tension among the population. The key problem of social and economic development of the region is to ensure the population’s welfare, including both adequate living conditions and income level. Many scientists have been involved in the formation and development of communities, namely P. Gural, A. Batanov, C. Jonassen, G Hillery, M. Baimuratov, О. Moroz, E. Ostrom, C. Tiebout. However, the accumulated practical experience and knowledge is not enough to clarify the prerequisites for the formation of communities on the principles of sustainable socio-economic development of the region. The article summarizes the approaches to forming communities on the principles of sustainable social and economic development of the region. To form communities on the principles of sustainable socio-economic development of the region, systemic reformation of the administrative and territorial structure at all the levels is required. Based on the provisions of the theory of fiscal decentralization, collective action, social self-organization, it is necessary to clearly identify the advantages of each of them and the possibility of applying provisions in domestic realities.

scholarly journals Spillover Effects across Transnational Industrial Relations Agreements: The Potential and Limits of Collective Action in Global Supply Chains

ILR Review ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 995-1020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Ashwin ◽  
Chikako Oka ◽  
Elke Schuessler ◽  
Rachel Alexander ◽  
Nora Lohmeyer
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Action Theory ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Spillover Effects ◽  
Global Supply Chains ◽  
Private Governance ◽  
Living Wages ◽  
Common Group ◽  
Positive Experiences ◽  
Inclusive Governance

Using qualitative data from interviews with multiple respondents in 45 garment brands and retailers, as well as respondents from unions and other stakeholders, the authors analyze the emergence of the Action Collaboration Transformation (ACT) living wages initiative. They ask how the inter-firm coordination and firm–union cooperation demanded by a multi-firm transnational industrial relations agreement (TIRA) developed. Synthesizing insights from the industrial relations and private governance literatures along with recent collective action theory, they identify a new pathway for the emergence of multi-firm TIRAs based on common group understandings, positive experiences of interaction, and trust. The central finding is that existing union-inclusive governance initiatives provided a platform from which spillover effects developed, facilitating the formation of new TIRAs. The authors contribute a new mapping of labor governance approaches on the dimensions of inter-firm coordination and labor inclusiveness, foregrounding socialization dynamics as a basis for collective action and problematizing the limited scalability of this mode of institutional emergence.

THEORY OF COLLECTIVE ACTION: RULES TRANSFORMATION

2019 ◽  
Vol 86 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-51
Author(s):  
E. M. Skarzhinskaya ◽  
V. I. Tzurikov
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Small Groups ◽  
Interpersonal Trust ◽  
Coalition Structure ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
Mutual Trust ◽  
Equilibrium Outcome ◽  
Coalition Member ◽  
Transactional Costs

The authors examine the mathematical modeling of methods for the coordination of collective action in the self-organization and self-governance mode. It is assumed that members of the collective create aggregate income whose value grows, as each member invests more effort. The goal pursued by each member of the collective is to maximize personal gains. As we established in the first part of the study, the lack of universal interpersonal trust prevents members of a uniform (unstructured) collective from overcoming a non-effective, Nash equilibrium outcome. Alternative options for structuring the collective were considered, such as creating small groups (coalitions) of agents sharing mutual trust within each group. The strategy of such coalition, aimed at maximizing coalitional gains rather than personal, leads to greater investment of effort by each coalition member, which in turn produces greater aggregate gains for the entire collective. We have shown that in order to secure stability of a coalition structure, first, stimuli for each coalition member are needed such that imply redistribution of quasi-rent to their benefit, and second, control must be exercised on the efforts of the agents. As models demonstrate, members of the collective left outside coalitions or forming small coalitions with a low share taken together (in aggregate) gains, have weaker stimuli for investment. The potential of increasing such stimuli and thereby increasing aggregate gains may be furnished by another, stronger hierarchic-shaped structure – provided transactional costs are sufficiently low. In order to realize this potential, entitlements to residual income must be concentrated in the hands of a single largest coalition or a number of largest coalitions, while banning all other members of the collective from receiving such income. The income of each agent is defined by the terms of the stimulating contract. We have proposed a general design of such a stimulating contract, creating all prerequisites for achieving equilibrium outcome, with Pareto-dominates equilibrium outcomes for other collective structuring options.

The Disappearance of Strikes in Tanzania: Incomes Policy and Industrial Democracy

1979 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dudley Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Social Welfare ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
The State ◽  
Living Standards ◽  
Industrial Democracy ◽  
Incomes Policy ◽  
Three Strikes ◽  
Definition Of

During the last few inflation-ridden years many countries have experienced a severe crisis of industrial relations as workers tried, through collective action, to preserve their living standards against the pressure of rising prices. But Tanzania stands as a conspicuous example of one country where, during the 1970s, strikes seem virtually to have disappeared, as may be seen from Table I.1 It is true that the Tanzanian definition of a strike excludes disputes lasting less than one day; and it is also true that there have been occasions since 1972 when workers have ‘downed tools’ for brief protest periods. But the lack of reported strikes in Tanzania is not a statistical illusion. The Labour Officers of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare keep a close watch on the state of industrial relations, and these occurrences are known to and are reported by them, as is shown by their recording of three strikes in 1977. This last fact also demonstrates that strikes can still occur in Tanzania.

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