Jörg Nowak and Marco Santana (2023) "Social Media and Collective Action in Brazil" Socialism and Democracy

Nowak, Jörg and Marco Santana. 2023. “Social Media and Collective Action in Brazil: The Experience of Truck Drivers and Delivery Workers.” Socialism and Democracy, online first, 17 May, pp. 1-21. 

Introduction

Collective action by workers and the role of social media have received increasing attention in the recent years (Lazar et al. Citation2018; Garelli Citation2020; Maffie Citation2020). This research is embedded in a larger literature about the logics of connective action (Bennett and Segerberg Citation2012) which are distinguished from an earlier logic of collective action (Offe and Wiesenthal Citation1980) with connective action exhibiting a specific organizational dynamic.

In this article, we address the experiences of delivery workers and truck drivers in Brazil with social media as an instrument of workers’ organizing and an element of collective action. We will ask more specifically about the role of social media in the 2018 truckers’ strike and the 2020 national strike of app-based delivery workers, Breque dos apps (Apps Brake). We explore both the possibilities and limits of the use of social media for worker action.

Jörg Nowak (2023) "The Pandemic Politics of the Bolsonaro Government in Brazil"

Nowak, Jörg. 2023. “The Pandemic Politics of the Bolsonaro Government in Brazil: COVID-19 Denial, the Chloroquine Economy and High Death Rates.” Pp. 105-23 in The Political Economy of Global Responses to COVID-19, edited by Alan W. Cafruny and Leila Simona Talani. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.

• Addresses how different political regimes tackled the pandemic

• Looks at the global response to the pandemic and tackles the political economy response to COVID 19

• Covers all global regions based on rigorous primary research

Part of the book series: International Political Economy Series (IPES)

Pablo Pérez Ahumada (2023) Trade union strength, business power, and labor policy reform

Pérez Ahumada, Pablo. 2023. “Trade Union Strength, Business Power, and Labor Policy Reform: The Cases of Argentina and Chile in Comparative Perspective.” International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Ahead-of-print edition (March 26).

Abstract

In this article, I explain why pro-labor reforms succeed or fail. Focusing on the cases of Argentina and Chile, I show that labor reforms are more successful in extending trade union rights when unions successfully build associational power and employers are less able to do so. Consistent with this argument, a quantitative analysis of time-series cross-sectional data from 78 countries suggests that the level of class power disparity is negatively correlated with the extension of workers’ collective rights. At the end of the article, I discuss how these results have implications for the study of labor reforms and power resources.

Keywords

Employer associations, labor reforms, labor rights, Latin America, power resources, trade unions

Michele Ford, Michael Gillan, and Htwe Htwe Thein (2023) Calling multinational enterprises to account

Ford, Michele, Michael Gillan, and Htwe Htwe Thein. 2023. “Calling Multinational Enterprises to Account: CSOs, Supranational Institutions and Business Practices in the Global South.” Global Networks: A Journal of Transnational Affairs, pp. 1-15.

Abstract

How do civil society organizations (CSOs) use state-backed supranational institutions to call multinational enterprises (MNEs) to account? There are few studies of precisely how CSOs—union and other—use institutional power in global value chain (GVC) governance or the impact of institutional change on actor behaviour. To address this gap, we assess the impact of changes in the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on CSO engagement with MNEs, comparing complaints lodged by CSOs before and after the Guidelines were revised in June 2011 to accommodate the rise in global prominence of the human rights and business frame. In our analysis, we focus on how constitutive and institutional power plays out in GVC governance, with special attention to the impact of institutional change on actor behaviour. Our analysis reveals that this state-backed mechanism provides CSOs with a structure through which to address human rights violations in some MNEs’ supply chains but also that, despite its high degree of reflexivity, ongoing design flaws limit its capacity to address the uneven distribution of power not only between CSOs and MNEs, but among CSOs themselves. In doing so, we draw attention to the need for further research on the dynamic multilevel interactions between the configuration and adjustment of supranational institutions and how these mediate CSO and MNE interactions.

Michele Ford, Michael Gillan, and Kristy Ward (2023) Beyond the brands

Ford, Michele, Michael Gillan, and Kristy Ward. 2023. “Beyond the Brands: COVID‐19, Supply Chain Governance, and the State–Labor Nexus.” Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society 62(2): 172-188.

Abstract

This article analyses the role played by brands, producer-country governments, and unions in mitigating the impact of disruptions caused to garment supply chains by COVID-19 in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Myanmar. Its findings challenge brand-centric accounts, highlighting the need for more serious consideration of the dynamic, relational nature of labor governance—and, in particular, of the role of the state–labor nexus in determining producer-country  unions'  ability  to  exercise  strategic  agency  within global supply chains.

Charles Weathers, , Shinji Kojima and Scott North (2023) Litigating Equal Pay for Equal Work in Japan, 2012–2020

Weathers, Charles, Shinji Kojima and Scott North. 2023. “Litigating Equal Pay for Equal Work in Japan, 2012-2020.” Journal of Contemporary Asia, pp. 1-21.

ABSTRACT

Litigation and courts have been important arbiters of labour policy reforms aimed at redressing Japan’s growing social inequality. This article considers seven lawsuits brought by non-regular workers, who sought to use Article 20 of the 2012 Labour Contracts Act to gain equal pay for equal work. All seven cases reached Japan’s Supreme Court amid Abe Shinzo’s 2018 labour reforms. The Court’s interpretations reaffirmed employer discretion in categorising employees as a reasonable principle, albeit one which limits the law’s power to redress wage inequality. However, the Court also found the non-provision of various minor benefits to be unreason-able. These outcomes evince a pattern in which litigation margin-ally transforms reformed labour policy into institutional support for greater equality of compensation and benefits between workers of different statuses. More than advancing equal pay for equal work, the outcomes of these cases support recent government-industry campaigns to boost productivity by encouraging increased use of job-based treatment and diversifying Japan’s employment system.

KEYWORDS

Equal pay for equal work; inequality; Japan; non-regular employment; Work Style Reform

2023 Journal of Contemporary Asia

Ahttps://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2023.2183140

Kim Scipes (2023) The Growing Crisis of the Colorado River

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “The Growing Crisis of the Colorado River: A Sign to Us All.”  ZNetwork, April 24. (The river has actually dropped 40 feet since the picture was taken in 2018—and the lake is 110 miles long!)

Kim Scipes, PhD, is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Purdue University Northwest in Westville, Indiana, and has taught a course on “Environment and Social Justice” since 2006.  Raised in the desert Southwest and a 1969 graduate of Alhambra High School in Phoenix, Dr. Scipes has lived, worked, traveled, and served in the US Marine Corps in the Southwest, where his siblings still live.  The author of four books, his “Climate Change, Environmental Destruction, and Social Justice” web page can be reached at https://www.pnw.edu/faculty/kim-scipes-ph-d/publications/climate-change-publication/.

Kim Scipes (2023) We STILL Don’t Get It: It is an Empire, Folks!

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “We STILL Don’t Get It: It’s an Empire, Folks.” Countecurrents.org, April 20. 

Kim Scipes, PhD, is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Purdue University Northwest in Westville, Indiana.  A former Sergeant in the USMC, he “turned around” on active duty, and has been a political and labor activist for over 50 years.  He has published four books and over 250 articles in the US and in 11 different countries.  His writings, many with direct links to the original article, can be found on-line at https://www.pnw.edu/faculty/kim-scipes-ph-d/publications/; his latest book is Building Global Labor Solidarity:  Lessons from the Philippines, South Africa, Northwestern Europe, and the United States (Lexington Books, 2021, 2022 paperback).

Kim Scipes (2023) Making Sense of the Latest IPCC Report

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “Making Sense of the Latest IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] Report (2023).” Countercurrents.org, April 3.  

Kim Scipes, PhD, is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Purdue University Northwest (PNW) in Westville, Indiana, who has been a political activist for over 50 years.  He has taught an undergraduate course on “Environment and Social Justice” since 2006.  He was recently presented with a 2023 Outstanding Faculty Engagement Award by his peers at PNW for his years of service to his communities, both on and off campus.

Kim Scipes (2023) Sociology

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “Sociology: A Guide to Action or to Analysis in the Global Climate Change Crisis? A Call for Action by the Social Sciences and the Humanities.” Class, Race and Corporate Power 11(1): 1-20.

Abstract

The debate over the purpose of sociological research has historically been one between Marx and Weber: is sociology’s role to analyze society (ala Weber) or to change it (Marx)?

The issue of climate change and environmental destruction is one that has been relegated to the margins of Sociology, being seen as an “environmental” issue. The changes we’ve seen so far, however, show how this has had and is having a major impact on human beings and, at least in the United States, is having a major impact on the culture of the country, both in general and specifically on different ethnic groups. This paper argues that it is time to move these issues to the forefront of sociology, and proposes that the American Sociological Association move it to the center of its program.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Recommended Citation

Scipes, Kim (2023) "Sociology: A Guide to Action or to Analysis in the Global Climate Change Crisis? A Call for Action by the Social Sciences and the Humanities," Class, Race and Corporate Power: Vol. 11: Iss. 1, Article 6.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/classracecorporatepower/vol11/iss1/6

Kim Scipes (2023) White Malice

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “White Malice: The CIA and the Covert Recolonization of Africa” by Susan Williams (Public Affairs Press, 2021): A Review Essay. Class, Race and Corporate Power 11(1): 1-8.

Abstract

Africa has long been looked at by outsiders as a continent that is hopelessly mired in corruption and incapable of social and economic development. This especially pertains to sub-Saharan Africa, overwhelmingly populated by black people, thus fitting the trope of white supremists that black people cannot successfully govern themselves.

This book by Susan Williams annihilates the lie. Williams details the impact of stealing millions of people for enslavement, the subsequent colonization of the continent by Western European powers and then, after the decolonization of a number of these countries, the recolonization of the continent by the United States operating explicitly albeit covertly through its Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Recommended Citation

Scipes, Kim (2023) ""White Malice: The CIA and the Covert Recolonization of Africa" by Susan Williams, (Public Affairs Press, 2021). A Review Essay," Class, Race and Corporate Power: Vol. 11: Iss. 1, Article 5.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/classracecorporatepower/vol11/iss1/5

Jenny Chan (2023) Buy with 1-Click (The Asia-Pacific Journal)

Chan, Jenny. 2023. “Buy with 1-Click: Independent Contracting and Migrant Workers in China’s Last-Mile Parcel Delivery.” The Asia-Pacific Journal 21(2): 1-18.

See also: Boris, Eileen, Heidi Gottfried, Julie Greene, and Joo-Cheong Tham, eds. 2023. Global Labor Migration: New Directions. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press.

Abstract: This article analyzes labor informality in the Chinese platform economy. Drawing on participant observation at a parcel delivery station in Beijing, the author discusses how individual and family lives are impacted by the hectic world of logistics work, and indeed, how companies have increased cost competitiveness through driving exploitation into forms hidden within the household. Migrant family members frequently assist each other by calling customers and wrapping parcels while their unpaid labor is subsidizing the company’s business operations. Although the spheres of production and social reproduction can sometimes be integrated in cities, they confront precarious work and unequal urban citizenship.

 

Keywords: Independent Contracting; Logistics and Delivery Services; Production and Social Reproduction; Informality and Precarity; Chinese Rural Migrant Workers

 

Figure 1: A team of couriers unloads a full truck of parcels in an early morning at the delivery station. The author, pictured in blue shirt, is a trainee while conducting participant observation in Beijing. Photo provided by the author (Jenny Chan).

Josep Maria Antentas (2022) The 15M, Podemos and the Long Crisis in Spain (Journal of Iberian and Latin American Research)

Antentas, Josep Maria. 2022. “The 15M, Podemos and the Long Crisis in Spain: Gramscian Perspectives.” Journal of Iberian and Latin American Research 28(3): 365-80.

ABSTRACT

This article aims to analyze the 15M movement and its outcomes through Gramscian lenses. The 15M expressed a crisis of ruling class hegemony based on a crisis of political representation. It was a moment of collective splintering and political subjectivation. Viewed from Gramsci’s distinction between small and big politics, the 15M marked the beginning of a phase in which big politics ceased to be the exclusive prerogative of the dominant classes and shifted towards subaltern groups. The sequence from 15M to Podemos can be analyzed as a cathartic moment in the Gramscian sense of the term and can also be read with the help of his concept of translation. Discussing Machiavelli’s work, Gramsci defined the party as a modern Prince. However, the conception of the party that prevailed in Podemos is narrower than that of Gramsci. His concept of transformism is useful to analyze Podemos’ strategic evolution.

Pablo Pérez Ahumada (2023) Class, union membership and organizational commitment (Economic and Industrial Democracy)

Pérez Ahumada, Pablo. 2023. “Class, Union Membership, and Organizational Commitment: A Multilevel Analysis of 28 Countries.” Economic and Industrial Democracy, online first 19 Jan, pp. 1-27.

Abstract

This article studies how organizational commitment is shaped by individual and macro-level factors. Drawing upon data from the 2015 International Social Survey Program (ISSP) and using multilevel modeling, the article shows that workers have less organizational commitment than employers. The article also presents evidence indicating that strong trade unions are positively correlated with organizational commitment. Finally, contrary to the hypothesis derived from previous studies, cross-level interactions suggest that in countries with strong corporatist industrial relations (IR) institutions, union members have lower levels of organizational commitment than non-union members. The article discusses how the findings contribute to the literature on class, neo-corporatism, and power resources. In addition, it reflects on how the findings contribute to the recent debate on the ‘neoliberal convergence’ of IR systems.

Jeff Hermanson (2022) Mexican Labor (NLF)

Hermanson, Jeffery. 2022. “Mexican Labor’s New Deal and the Promise of North American Worker Solidarity.” New Labor Forum, first published December 29.  https://doi.org/10.1177/10957960221144973

Author Biography

Jeffery Hermanson has been a union organizer and officer since 1977, working with the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (later UNITE!), United Brotherhood of Carpenters, Writers Guild of America, West, and the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center. He is president of the International Union Educational League, a non-profit organization that supports unions in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.

Verena Schmidt, Edward Webster, Siviwe Mhlana and Kally Forrest (2023) ILO

Schmidt, Verena, Edward Webster, Siviwe Mhlana and Kally Forrest. 2023. “Negotiations by Workers in the Informal Economy.” ILO Working Paper 86.

This paper provides empirical evidence from Africa, Asia and the Americas on negotiations and collective bargaining by workers in the informal economy.

Kim Scipes (Jan 2023)

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “A Response to Jeff Schuhrke’s ‘From Solidarity to Shock Therapy: The AFL-CIO and the Fall of Soviet Communism,’” with Schuhrke’s response. LAWCHA Newsletter [The Labor and Working-Class History Association], January 4. 

 

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “Review: Learning from an Older Generation of Troublemakers”: Troublemaker: Saying No to Power by Frank Emspak (2022). Labor Notes, January 5.

 

Scipes, Kim. 2023. “Climate Change is Real—and It is Now.” Northwest Indiana Times, January 8 (B-1 and B 7).