Trade unions in transformation

 -Trade Union-

However, trade unions are neither helpless nor passive! All trade unions do have power. Power comes in different forms and shapes. The concept of »power resources« distinguishes four types of power unions can draw from. The resolute collective action that mobilizes the associational power of workers is at the heart of labour agency. Labour power may also reside in its place in the production process, that is, unions may make use of their structural power to disrupt or withdraw labour. Thirdly, unions have power within institutional arrangements, including through labour laws and within tripartite bodies. Finally, unions can mobilize societal power by building alliances with social and political actors or by influencing public debate, for example when they successfully link their struggles to broader social norms and values.

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The role and challenges of Trade Unions in Post-Apartheid South Africa: the case of the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union

 -Trade Union-

The role and challenges of Trade Unions in Post-Apartheid South Africa

The study also found that although the union has made significant gains in the workplace, it was still faced with many challenges. Some of the major issues mentioned include lack of transformation in certain sectors where the union organizes employees, casualization of jobs, outsourcing of services, deployment of union leaders outside the union, corruption in the workplace, threat posed by rival unions and many other issues.

The study concludes by arguing that the conditions are not yet conducive for trade unions to lead the struggle for a socialist transformation in South Africa. The researcher attributes this largely to the contradictions that continue to affect the alliance and the inability of unions to exert their influence in the alliance on major policy issues. The findings revealed that the alliance is characterized by the presence of two camps, whose goals and objectives are not the same. These divisions within the alliance work against any commitment that these leaders might have in the struggle. Finally, the study recommends that unions in South Africa will need to review their relationship with political parties if they are to realize their long term goals and objectives.

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What role for trade unions in future workplace relations?

 

Chris F. Wright, Research Fellow, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge

The role of trade unions has changed significantly over the past 30 years. Global competition, a growing trend in outsourcing, legal constraints, and employer sponsored forms of employee participation have combined in precipitating a significant fall in union membership and the coverage of collective bargaining. The coming decade promises to be equally challenging for the trade union movement. How they respond to the challenges and opportunities over the next few years will be crucial in determining their level of influence at work and beyond in the future. 

work and beyond in the future. looks at membership trends and examines how unions are shaping relations between workers and their employers in today’s workplaces, union responses to labour market fragmentation, and the strategies that unions are pursuing to revitalise membership and restore their influence in the workplace.

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