The Limits of Labor Exclusion

Redefining the Politics of Split Labor Markets under Globalization

Bibliographic Data

ID2369725
AuthorsJ J Chun (0000-0002-0216-6376, University of British Columbia, corresponding author)
Year2008
Volume34
Issue3
Pages433-452
Publication date2008-05-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCritical Sociology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0896-9205 • E-ISSN: 1569-1632
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0896920507088167
OpenAlexW2001202030
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited36

Although exclusion has defined union politics for much of the 20th century, its limits are clear today. Union membership and capacity is declining, and historically disadvantaged workers such as racialized immigrants and women with whom unions have weak linkages are employed in expanding sectors of the low-paid, service economy. By conducting a comparative historical analysis of the US and South Korean labor movements, this article argues that shifts in the balance of power among labor, capital and the state under processes of globalization have fueled more inclusive directions for labor. Contrary to conventional wisdom, workers in the lower tier - a group commonly perceived as lacking the resources and power to challenge downgraded forms of employment - are pivotal to overcoming the exclusionary legacies of the past. The weakening basis of power for workers in the upper tier, the reconstitution of the lower tier, and social movement legacies play a major role in transforming the state of labor politics

Disadvantaged · Economic growth · Economics · Globalization · Immigration · Labor history · Labor relations · Labour economics · Market economy · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Secondary labor market · Split labor market theory · Employment and Welfare Studies · Labor Movements and Unions · Law · Migration, Ethnicity, and Economy · Industrial Relations

Tools

Open DOISci-Hub