Global Unions?: Theory And Strategies Of Organized Labour In The Global Political Economy (routledge Ripe Studies I Global Political Economy)

Global Unions? ‘Global Unions? is an inspired collection. It has a wealth of accessible empirical detail on the condition of labour in the global political economy via comparative, case study and international perspectives. In addressing the central question of the prospects for union organization under highly differentiated global labour relations, the authors usefully historicize our understanding of the relationship between globalization, the nation-state and labour politics as a new social question of our time.’ Philip McMichael, Cornell University This edited collection examines the role of unions in an increasingly global political economy. Global labour issues have recently jumped on to the agenda of international relations and industrial relations. Unions have been active in trying to influence policies of multinational corporations and international organizations such as the World Trade Organization, the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and trade agreements in the Americas. The book includes case studies on: • • • • • the geography of labour struggles in the United States; trade union training on globalization in the UK and Brazil; transformation in US and Canadian union international policies; labour and regional integration in the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific; the campaign for global labour standards. Jeffrey Harrod is Emeritus Professor of International and Comparative Labour Studies at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague and teaches at the International School for Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Amsterdam. Robert O’Brien is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and a member of the Institute on Globalization and the Human Condition at McMaster University, Canada. RIPE Series in Global Political Economy Series editors: Otto Holman, Marianne H. Marchand (Research Centre for International Political Economy, University of Amsterdam ), Henk Overbeek (Free University, Amsterdam) and Marianne Franklin (University of Amsterdam) This series, published in association with the Review of International Political Economy, provides a forum for current debates in international political economy. The series aims to cover all the central topics in IPE and to present innovative analyses of emerging topics. The titles in the series seek to transcend a statecentred discourse and focus on three broad themes: • • • the nature of the forces driving globalisation forward; resistance to globalisation; the transformation of the world order. The series comprises two strands: The RIPE Series in Global Political Economy aims to address the needs of students and teachers, and the titles will be published in hardback and paperback. Titles include: Transnational Classes and International Relations Kees van der Pijl Gender and Global Restructuring: Sightings, Sites and Resistances Edited by Marianne H. Marchand and Anne Sisson Runyan Global Political Economy Contemporary Theories Edited by Ronen Palan Ideologies of Globalization Contending Visions of a New World Order Mark Rupert The Clash within Civilisations Coming to Terms with Cultural Conflicts Dieter Senghaas Global Unions? Theory and Strategies of Organized Labour in the Global Political Economy Edited by Jeffrey Harrod and Robert O’Brien Routledge/RIPE Studies in Global Political Economy is a forum for innovative new research intended for a high-level specialist readership, and the titles will be available in hardback onl