Union Organizing

After many years of indifferent decline, trade union membership is now being revitalized; strategies known as 'union organizing' are being used to recruit and re-energize unions around the globe. This book considers exactly how trade unions are working to do this and provides a much-needed evaluation of these rebuilding strategies. By comparing historical and contemporary case studies to assess the impact of various organizing campaigns, this book assesses the progress of unions across Europe and America. It raises key debates about the organizing culture and considers the impact of recent union recognition laws on employers and the government's Fairness at Work policy. A topical and in-depth study into the experiences of trade unions across Europe and America, this is a comprehensive and thought provoking book which is essential reading for those in the industrial relations field.

Foreword, Sheldon Friedman Chapter 1. Introduction, Gregor Gall Chapter 2. Organising the Unorganised: Union Recruitment Strategies in American Transnationals, c. 1945-1977, Bill Knox and Alan McKinlay Chapter 3. Organising in the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry in Britain, c. 1972-1990: A Long Flame Burning or a Spark that has Gone Out?, Gregor Gall Chapter 4. Trade Union Recruitment Policy in Britain: Form and Ethics, Edmund Heery, Melanie Simms, Rick Delbridge, John Salmon and Dave Simpson Chapter 5. Employer Opposition to Union Recognition, Gregor Gall Chapter 6. Union Organising in a Not-for-Profit Organisation, Melanie Simms Chapter 7. Organising in Electronics: Recruitment, Recognition and Representation - Shadow Shop Stewards in Scotland's 'Silicon Glen', Patricia Findlay and Alan McKinlay Chapter 8. Organising in Transport and Travel: Learning Lessons from TSSA's Seacat Campaign, Jane Wills Chapter 9. Call Centre Organising in Adversity: From Excell to Vertex, Phil Taylor and Peter Bain Chapter 10. Comparisons and Prospects: Industrial Relations and Trade Unions in North America and Britain, Brian Towers Chapter 11. Union Organising in the United States, Jack Fiorito Chapter 12. Union Recognition in Germany: A Dual System of Industrial Relations with Two Recognition Problems, Otto Jacobi Chapter 13. Conclusion: Drawing up a Balance Sheet, Gregor Gall