prospects for workplace trade unionism: Evaluating Fairbrother's union renewal thesis, The Capital & Class, Autumn 1998 by Gall, Gregor

prospects for workplace trade unionism: Evaluating Fairbrother's union renewal thesis, The Capital & Class, Autumn 1998 by Gall, Gregor

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3780/is_199810/ai_n8813669


"Peter Fairbrother has extensively developed the thesis of `union renewal' which seeks to show that the challenges posed to contemporary trade unionism can be met by changes in the form of unionism. This critique, while welcoming the general thrust of the thesis, questions its validity and application as a result of its failure to consider a number of areas and issues."


SO FOR THE CONCLUSION OF THIS THESIS ARE THERE TWO THINGS IN THE OFFING:

SOMETHING ON THE DEMISE OF UNIONS AS A SOCIAL MOVEMENT OF THE CLASS??

THE UNION RENEWAL SORT OF THESIS THATS DOTTED THROUGH OUT THE LITERATURE WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THE "LIVING COLLECTIVITY" IDEA ADVANCED BY HYMAN?

OR A HOPE FOR NEW FORMS OF SOLIDARITY EMERGING FROM WITHIN WORKERS ENGAGED IN THE SOCIAL MOVEMENT - THE ARGUMENT OF THE MULTITUDE SAY?

"renewal is about the way unions reorganise and recompose themselves to meet the problems of work and employment.... it is in the workplace that unions organise, sustain and renew themselves. ... any move towards union renewal must and will come from the bottom up [i.e. the ordinary members not national officials]. (Fairbrother 1989: 3,4,6)"