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Reaching out for strength within? ‘Social movement unionism’ in a small country setting
Author(s) -
Parker Jane
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
industrial relations journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.525
H-Index - 3
eISSN - 1468-2338
pISSN - 0019-8692
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-2338.2011.00633.x
Subject(s) - appeal , trade union , context (archaeology) , political science , face (sociological concept) , social movement , political economy , social justice , civil society , economic justice , movement (music) , sociology , economics , labour economics , politics , law , social science , paleontology , philosophy , biology , aesthetics
Trade unions around the developed world face common challenges in terms of declining membership and influence, and ‘conventional’ union revival strategies have yielded limited success. A relatively recent innovation has been the embrace of ‘social movement unionism’ (SMU), which challenges traditional workplace conceptions of trade union roles via alliances with campaigning civil society organisations. This empirical study examines how SMU is conceived and applied in a small country context, focusing on the role of the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions. The findings suggest that SMU can appeal to trade union associations in smaller national (or regional) settings owing to a combination of institutional and size effects which concentrate networks. This has implications for unions and union federations interested in advancing both workplace and wider social justice concerns.