Description
Book SynopsisAfter many years of indifferent decline, trade union membership is now being revitalized; strategies known as âunion organizingâ 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, this book assesses 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.
A topical and in-depth study into the experiences of trade unions across Europe and America, this is a comprehensive and thought provoking book which is essential reading for those in the industrial relations field.
Trade Review"This is an outstanding collection of original empirical studies of union organizing activity. There is an abundance of evidence, from both surveys and case studies, invariably presented in a clear and readable style and illuminated by relevant theory. With contributions by the leading researchers in the field, Union Organising is set to become a landmark text on the rising fortunes of the British labour movement." I Professor John Kelly, Department of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics "This book makes an excellent research-based contribution to the study of contemporary labor movement revitalization. The authors add to a growing literature that views unions as strategic actors rather than as victims of global market forces and government and employer opposition. If there is not yet a new paradigm, still there is a promising shift in union strategy toward rank-and-file mobilization and more activist, organizing unionism - changes that are well documented and analyzed here." I Lowell Turner, Professor of International and Comparative Labor, Cornell University
Table of ContentsForeword, Sheldon Friedman Chapter 1. Introduction, Gregor Gall Chapter 2. Organising the Unorganised: Union Recruitment Strategies in American Transnationals, c. 1945-1977, Bill Knox and Alan McKinlay Chapter 3. Organising in the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry in Britain, c. 1972-1990: A Long Flame Burning or a Spark that has Gone Out?, Gregor Gall Chapter 4. Trade Union Recruitment Policy in Britain: Form and Ethics, Edmund Heery, Melanie Simms, Rick Delbridge, John Salmon and Dave Simpson Chapter 5. Employer Opposition to Union Recognition, Gregor Gall Chapter 6. Union Organising in a Not-for-Profit Organisation, Melanie Simms Chapter 7. Organising in Electronics: Recruitment, Recognition and Representation - Shadow Shop Stewards in Scotland's 'Silicon Glen', Patricia Findlay and Alan McKinlay Chapter 8. Organising in Transport and Travel: Learning Lessons from TSSA's Seacat Campaign, Jane Wills Chapter 9. Call Centre Organising in Adversity: From Excell to Vertex, Phil Taylor and Peter Bain Chapter 10. Comparisons and Prospects: Industrial Relations and Trade Unions in North America and Britain, Brian Towers Chapter 11. Union Organising in the United States, Jack Fiorito Chapter 12. Union Recognition in Germany: A Dual System of Industrial Relations with Two Recognition Problems, Otto Jacobi Chapter 13. Conclusion: Drawing up a Balance Sheet, Gregor Gall
