Jane Holgate

Organizing migrant workers

The structural position of black and minority ethnic workers (BME) and migrant workers in the UK labour market is relatively well known. Many workers in these groups find themselves in low-paid, low-skilled jobs primarily because of their ethnicity and regardless of their skills. This racialization of the labour market has been well documented - particularly since the ‘large-scale’ BME immigration in the post-war period. What is less well known is what it is like to work in these increasingly segmented sections of the economy where white workers have abandoned jobs in favour of (slightly) more lucrative work. Adopting a case-study approach, this article follows a trade union’s attempt to organize a sandwich factory of 500 workers, where most of the workforce was made up of BME migrant workers.

Organising for what? Where is the debate on the politics of organising?

Many unions that have adopted ‘new’ organising approaches have tended to see organising as a ‘toolbox’ of practices rather than as having an underpinning political philosophy or objective. Adopting such an approach has left out the fundamental question of what are we1 organising ‘for’? Academics studying these developments have tended to evaluate organising outcomes against whatever objectives unions have set themselves and have not dealt with the question of what organising is and what it is for. It is important to examine the politics and processes underpinning organising activity and to keep in mind these fundamental questions. We (re)examine the political dynamics of organising and argue that there is a need for a more robust notion of power and the centrality of worker self-organisation in organising objectives.

Intersectionality: are we taking enough notice in the field of work and employment relations?

Intersectional analysis has been developing since its emergence from critical race feminism in the 1980s when it was used to conceptualize the inter-relationship of race and gender and, particularly, the experiences of discrimination and marginalization of black women in employment. While its contribution has been much debated within sociological and gender specific journals, its use still remains relatively limited within studies of work and employment relations. It is argued here that this field of study would benefit from greater engagement with and understanding of an intersectional approach to both the design and interpretation of research. Two lines of reasoning are put forward for this contention: firstly, that the intersectional approach contains an important caution against over-generalization that has been obscured; secondly, that separating the challenge for all academics to be more intersectionally sensitive from the methodological challenges of taking an intersectional approach brings the significance of intersectionality into sharper relief.

Organising migrants as workers or as migrant workers? Intersectionality, trade unions and precarious work

This paper considers precarious work from the point of view of trade union practice in the area of equality and diversity, exploring the way in which unions organise and recruit low-paid, vulnerable migrant workers. A theoretical approach is developed in order to understand the particular vulnerability and diversity of migrant workers in the labour market. Insights from the literature on intersectionality are applied to the study of employment, industrial relations and human resource management practice. Drawing from four case studies, the strategies of three UK trade unions towards organising low-paid migrants are compared. It is concluded that trade unions tend to consider migrants primarily as workers (taking on a so-called ‘universalistic’ approach), rather than as migrant workers with particular and overlapping forms of oppression (a ‘particularistic’ approach). As a result, unions tend to construct a dichotomy between workplace and migration issues, impeding the effective involvement of diverse and marginalised workers into unions. Based on these findings, we argue that integrating universalistic and particularistic approaches to union organising and recruitment strategies is critical to promote the successful involvement of vulnerable migrants into trade unions.

Community organising in the UK: A ‘new’ approach for trade unions?

In recent years a number of UK unions have been considering how to (re)engage with communities in order to rebuild the links that were so important to the origins and development of trade unionism. As such, we have seen parts of the UK union movement investing time and resources into exploring whether community organising can engage new actors and new union members in fighting for workers’ rights and against social injustice more broadly. This article explores the factors behind this ‘new’ turn to community-based organising and outlines the current state of developments in this area; it is based on over 10 years of research into community organising in the UK, working closely with the TUC, affiliate unions and community-based organisations. Findings suggest that the current economic climate and declining power at the point of production, as well as successes by new actors in the employment-relations arena, are driving this current interest and activity in community organising.

An International Study of Trade Union Involvement in Community Organizing: Same Model, Different Outcomes

This article reports on a two-year study of union/community organizing in the UK, USA and Australia. It takes a particular model of organizing — that of the Industrial Areas Foundation — and analyses trade union engagement in coalition-building activity in each of the three countries. Findings show mixed approaches to working with community groups from ad hoc instrumentalism to deep coalition-building. While these variations may, in part, be explained by different industrial relations contexts, it appears that the ‘fit’ between ideology and culture of unions and their coalition partners, as well as the practices and strategies that reinforce this fit, have much greater effect on the attitude and behaviour of unions towards non-workplace-based organizing. The article contributes to debates about the conditions under which unions succeed (or not) in sustaining strong coalition-building beyond their traditional constituencies.

Faith in Unions: From Safe Spaces to Organised Labour?

Despite the UK trade union movement’s avowedly secular nature, its antecedents show that religious beliefs greatly influenced many early trade unionists and, in some cases, contributed to the formation of a trade union consciousness. This paper considers the way trade union leaders in the 19th and 20th centuries drew upon religious teachings of social justice to organise their fellow workers. This context provides background for understanding how today a similar ideological commitment to collectivisation and social justice may be held by workers of faith; and how the adoption of a ‘militant secularism’ by some trade unionists may result in the closing of these conceptual spaces.

Union Decline and Voice among Minority Ethnic Workers

This paper reports on a study of the experiences of minority ethnic workers in seeking advice and support for workplace problems. Our focus on three minority ethnic groups (Kurdish, Black Caribbean and South Asian) in three specific localities of London is unique in that it provides new micro-level qualitative data on whether or not local social networks are utilised to assist with employment problems. The research explores workers’ knowledge of what employment advice is available in their localities and their experiences of seeking advice. Interviewees included community advice workers, trade unionists, lawyers and funding bodies about the extent of local employment provision. The findings show that there are few places to turn and a dearth of individual employment advice.

Visualizing ‘community’: an experiment in participatory photography among Kurdish diasporic workers in London

Most accounts of research methods in academic journals give an impression that research progresses in an orderly, logical and linear manner. Yet, in reality it is often more ‘messy’ than we admit. This paper reports on an experiment on the use of visual photographic methods in a study of Kurdish migrant workers in London who have had problems at work. The aim was to understand the type of problems workers faced and how they attempted to solve or deal with the issues they encountered. We were interested in the extent to which workers looked to local communities for support and if or how their identity impacted on the actions they took. The use of participant-generated photography developed while the research was in progress and was utilized in addition to individual and group interviews in order to explore if this was helpful (to us and to research participants) in explaining issues, such as identity and ‘community’, which can often be difficult to verbalize or articulate. As a first foray into incorporating visual methods we struggled at first with ways to explain to participants the type of data we wanted, before learning that it was important to ‘lose control’ and allow participants to ‘speak’ for themselves using the lens of their cameras. The paper explores theoretical justifications that influenced our approach in our first attempt at participatory photography. It will look at the use of images constructed by research participants and how these were used in focus group situations to explore how or whether individual meanings of work, identity, community and belonging have resonance in the wider Kurdish community.

Workplace Problems Among Kurdish Workers in London: Experiences of an ‘Invisible’ Community and the Role of Community Organisations as Support Networks

Little is known about the experiences of Kurdish workers in the UK and even less about how they attempt to resolve any difficulties or problems that arise at work. In part, this is due to academic oversight, but it is also because Kurdish workers are difficult to identify from statistical data and thus understanding of their labour market position is largely based on anecdotal information. The paper explores these workplace experiences, highlighting the complex relationship between employment, identity, community organisation and exile politics and how these intersect and affect the behaviour of Kurdish workers. The paper draws upon 61 interviews with workers from a variety of employment backgrounds to explore the experiences of workers from this ‘invisible’ community.