1,721,011 research outputs found
New Protest Movements and the Revival of Labour Politics – A Critical Examination
No full textThis article considers the extent to which the anti-globalisation movement might contribute to a revival of labour politics. The starting point is an awareness that the trade unions and the anti-globalists do not necessarily see eye to eye so that any assumption that they can readily join forces becomes problematical. Four fault lines are identified in relation to key areas of concern: i) political alternatives; ii) participatory democracy; iii) organic cohesion and inclusion; and iv) the renewal of activism. The article focuses on the case of France - regarded as something of an archetype of social movement unionism - and on its interface with the ETUC in the process of European integration. It is pointed out that while - in the view of the author - the anti-globalisation movement does indeed offer a potential source and impetus for a revitalisation of labour politics, this is no tame option but one requiring a carefully thought out strategy on the part of the trade unions and the social movements. The article concludes, accordingly, on a note of scepticism about the way in which the international trade union bodies have so far approached these issues, stressing the risk that the trade unions could find themselves between a rock and a hard place.Griffith Business School, Dept of Employment Relations and Human ResourcesNo Full Tex
Australie. Rattrapage et transition en demi-teinte / Australia. Lacklustre adjustments and transition
No full textDe retour au pouvoir en 2022, les travaillistes font adopter une loi mettant en place une
politique environnementale. L’alignement sur l’accord de Paris et la création d’une agence fédérale de transition énergétique étaient des revendications du congrès syndical de l’ACTU de 2021. Si les syndicats soutiennent le dispositif de transition, des divisions subsistent. Les divergences reflètent l’ambiguïté de la politique qui vise à réduire les émissions domestiques mais pas les exportations de combustibles fossiles, pourtant majoritaires dans la production énergétique / Back in power in 2022, the Labour Party passed on a legislation on climate action. The alignment to the Paris Agreement and the creation of a national net-zero authority were unions’ policies in Congress, 2021. While unions are in their majority in support of the government initiative, divsions remain. Divergences reflect the underlying contradiction in environmental policies targeting the reduction of domestic emissions but not the exportation of fossil fuel, however vastly responsible of Australian derived global emissions
A cross-examination of Indigenous trade unions voices in the French Pacific Territories
Full text linkThe 'Curse of Wealth': New Caledonia is home to around (or above) an estimated quarter of the world reserve of nickel- the French call it the 'caillou', the rock - and there is not much hope for indigenous people that multinational corporations will leave a place where there is so much to exploit. SMSP and Xstrata have recently invested US7 billions
Au pays du mateship, la depolitisation est institutionnelle
No full textThe overall ambition of this book was to address whether and in which ways the world of work still informs politics. This book chapter specifically discusses the politics of solidarity under labourism in Australia. In doing so the analysis refers to two cardinal notions underlying the social foundation of solidarity: the concepts of 'mateship' in the realm of praxis and 'fair go' in the ideological domain. It is argued that, in a rather counter-intuitive way, both notions share liberal roots. The 'fair go' relates much more to a principle of social justice, in Rawls sense, than to a holistic (and socialist) view of society. The 'mateship' concept is based on voluntarism located within a system of mutual obligations in Maussian terms. A Century ago, a foreign observer characterised Australian labour politics as 'Socialism without doctrine'. The historical institutionalisation of labourism, it is contended, has led to an over-representation of labour and, as a matter of path dependency, has also introduced a 'pragmatic' model of solidarity par défaut which is disconnected from politics; a 'solidarity without doctrine' in other words. This has multiple consequences which are discussed throughout the chapter, one of which is the rather conservative nature of labour politics in Australia. The very notion of a fair go, as the adjective 'fair' suggests, refers more to a politics of resignation (which, in turn, is subordinated to an order or a fate and, by implication, 'luck') than to a politics of emancipation. To the extent that solidarity largely relies on voluntarism, collective identities, social bonding and boundaries are defined through, and within, socialisation. Yet, however strong the socialisation may be, the limits of inclusion are also the frontiers of exclusion
Australie. Rattrapage et transition en demi-teinte / Australia. Lacklustre adjustments and transition
No full textDe retour au pouvoir en 2022, les travaillistes font adopter une loi mettant en place une
politique environnementale. L’alignement sur l’accord de Paris et la création d’une agence fédérale de transition énergétique étaient des revendications du congrès syndical de l’ACTU de 2021. Si les syndicats soutiennent le dispositif de transition, des divisions subsistent. Les divergences reflètent l’ambiguïté de la politique qui vise à réduire les émissions domestiques mais pas les exportations de combustibles fossiles, pourtant majoritaires dans la production énergétique / Back in power in 2022, the Labour Party passed on a legislation on climate action. The alignment to the Paris Agreement and the creation of a national net-zero authority were unions’ policies in Congress, 2021. While unions are in their majority in support of the government initiative, divsions remain. Divergences reflect the underlying contradiction in environmental policies targeting the reduction of domestic emissions but not the exportation of fossil fuel, however vastly responsible of Australian derived global emissions
Les relations professionnelles à Singapour: le cas des travailleurs migrants: le droit de grève à l'examen
Full text link[Author's Abstract] The management and regulation of Singapore's labour market has been central to the island state's workforce development strategy and a key to the international competitiveness of its economy, and continues to be so. In order to maintain its world competitiveness ranking ‒ second after Switzerland in 2012 ‒ the Singapore government has embarked on a project to transition Singapore from a highly regulated and competently managed labour market supplying reliable and flexible workers to multi-national investors and government linked companies into a talent capital and training hub for the Asia-Pacific region. To this end a network of institutions, that include the peak trade union and employer federations, professional associations, universities, polytechnics, the national workforce development agency, and national and approved employer technical training centres, are coordinated by and follow a master plan that aims to substantially enhance the skills profile of Singaporean workers by 2020. In the interim, and possibly for the long haul, more than one third of Singapore's workforce comprises foreigners, most unskilled and semi-skilled with little or no prospect of a future in Singapore. In late 2012 a group of these workers, employed as bus drivers, organised and conducted an illegal strike, something unknown in Singapore since 1977. Their action fuelled growing criticism by Singaporeans of their government's reliance on foreign workers, including on professional and entrepreneurial employees, some of whom could be invited to take up permanent residency. With an emphasis on unskilled and semi-skilled foreign workers, this article analyses Singapore's politically and socially constructed labour market, the return of overt industrial conflict, and assesses their significance for the future of employment relations in Singapore
Acting Together for Another World? Anti-Globalisation and Labour Organisations
No full textThis article considers the extent to which the anti-globalisation movement might contribute to a revival of labour politics. The starting point is an awareness that trade unions and anti-globalists do not necessarily see eye to eye so that any assumption that they can readily join forces becomes problematical. Four fault lines are identified in relation to key areas of concern: i) political alternatives; ii) participatory democracy; iii) organic cohesion and inclusion; and iv) the renewal of activism. It is pointed out that while - in the view of leading analysts in this field of inquiry - the anti-globalisation movement does indeed offer a potential source and impetus for a revitalisation, this is no tame option, especially in the context of labour corporatism. However, a sensible shift in the way in which the international trade union organisations have recently been approaching these issues may signal a repositioning of labour as a catalyst of solidarity.Griffith Business School, Dept of Employment Relations and Human ResourcesNo Full Tex
Global Unions: Challenging Transnational Capital through Cross-Border Campaigns
No full textGriffith Business School, Dept of Employment Relations and Human ResourcesNo Full Tex
Alter-globalisation, vector for the revitalisation of syndicalism?
No full textGriffith Business School, Dept of Employment Relations and Human ResourcesNo Full Tex
Labour and Climate Action in Australia: Stepping Away from the Hegemony?
No full textWith Labour back in Government, the climate agenda has taken a step forward in 2023, least in legislation. It was not surprising nor unusual that the initiatives put forward, the National Energy Transition Authority Bill 2022 (effective March 2023) and the National Net-Zero Authority later in July, reflected demands from the ACTU Congress 2021. To start with, the presentation will thus come back to the ACTU policies regarding climate action, as elaborated in Congress; policy statements which were further developed into an action plan 2021-2025 and best practices. While the Labour Government committed to align Australian efforts to the Paris Agreement and the international community on climate action, views are diverging. Australia has the potential for the optimists, but action must be of significant scale and targeted. Targets are set too low, for the environmentalists. And there are doubts being raised concerning Labour’s true commitment given on-going support to mining expansion. We will then turn the attention to the divisions within the labour movement itself. While polarised union positions are known for some time, including internal dissonance within Federations themselves, what to expect? And what about unions’ alliances with environmental groups? The case of Adani was emblematic of Labour and unions’ ambivalence when it comes to mining. What to expect so long Australia struggles to depart from the ‘hegemony of fossil fuels’ (Wright, 2020)? As transitioning is likely to be more challenging in resource-based economies, we will conclude on an international note about Argentina and Canada in comparison
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