1st Edition

Global Unions? Theory and Strategies of Organized Labour in the Global Political Economy

Edited By Jeffrey Harrod, Robert O'Brien Copyright 2002
    304 Pages
    by Routledge

    304 Pages
    by Routledge

    This edited collection examines the interaction between industrial relations and international relations in the global economy. The role of trade unions has changed significantly in the era of economic globalization and this book analyzes the key developments in union strategy on a local, national, regional and global level.

    List of Illustrations Acknowledgements List of Contributors Part I. International Political Economy and Organized Labour: Approaches and Theories Chapter 1. Introduction: Organized Labour and Global Political Economy Chapter 2. Work, Production and Social Relations: Repositioning the Firm in the International Political Economy Chapter 3. Towards an International Political Economy of Labour Chapter 4. Internationalization, Industrial Relations and International Relations Part II. National and Regional Strategies Chapter 5. Organizing Globally, Organizing Local: Geographical Scale and Union Spatial Strategy Chapter 6. Trade Unions, Training and Globalization: Initiatives in Britain and Brazil Chapter 7. The International Dimension of Labour Federation Economic Strategy in Canada and the United States 1947 - 2000 Chapter 8. Unions, States and Capitals: Competing (Inter)nationalisms in North America and European Integration Chapter 9. International Labour and Regional Integration: Asia-Pacific Part III. The Global Arena: Unions and Global Dynamics Chapter 10. The Constraints on Labour Internationalism: Contradictions and Prospects Chapter 11. Labour Movement Renewal in the Era of Globalization: Union Responses in the South Chapter 12. Peripheralizing Labour: the ILO, WTO and the Completion of the Bretton Woods Project Chapter 13. The Varied Paths to Minimum Global Labour Standads Chapter 14. Labour as a Global Social Force: Past Divisions and New Tasks References Index

    Biography

    Jeffrey Harrod is Emeritus professor of International and Comparative Labour Studies at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague and teaches at the International School for Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Amsterdam.
    Robert O'Brien is an Associate Professor in the department of Political Science and a member of the Institute on Globalization and the Human Condition at McMaster University, Canada.

    'A stimulating book. It unravels a range of issues relevant to the survival of unionism and gives much food for thought on union policy.' - Labour & Industry