by RolandErne (Author)
Roland Erne's view of transnational trade union networks challenges the assertion that no realistic prospect exists for remedying the European Union's democratic deficit-that is, its domination by corporate interests and lack of a cohesive European people. His book describes the emergence of a European trade union movement that crosses national boundaries. Erne assesses national and EU-level trade union politics in two core areas: wage bargaining in the European Monetary Union and job protection during transnational corporate mergers and restructuring. The wage coordination policies of the European metal and construction workers' unions and the unions' responses in the ABB-Alstom Power and Alcan-Pechiney-Algroup merger cases, Erne finds, show that the activities of labor are not confined to the national level: labor's policies have undergone Europeanization. This cross-national borrowing of tactics is itself proof of the increasing integration of European states and societies.
European Unions is based on an exceptionally wide range of research methods, including statistical analysis, participant observation, and interviews with EU-level, national, and local trade unionists and works councilors. It also draws on a wide range of European, German, French, Italian, and Swiss union documents and a multilingual body of academic literature across several disciplines, including political science, sociology, and law. Erne's multilevel inquiry goes beyond country-by-country comparisons of national cases and his book will prove of great relevance to readers interested in the future of labor, social justice, and democracy in an increasingly integrated world.
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 260
Edition: 2nd edition
Publisher: ILR Press
Published: May 2008
ISBN 10: 0801446481
ISBN 13: 9780801446481
European Unions is a very useful, well-constructed, and welcome contribution to a growing literature on the coordination of unions at the European level and is particularly valuable for its case studies. Erne handles the complexities of his subject well, applies his theoretical framework in a convincing way, and provides enough well-marshaled detail to persuade the reader of at least parts of his case.
* Industrial Relations *Erne provides strong empirical evidence that unions not only are affected by European integration but also affect future EU developments through their actions. Erne provides readers with a timely and useful analysis of the ways that economic integration is changing the power resources of organized labor in Europe, the types of strategies unions have developed in response, and the role that labor may play in shaping the political development of the EU down the road.
* Industrial and Labor Relations Review *Erne's pertinent study of European trade unionism is a sophisticated, nuanced examination of organized labor's attempt to create a transnational democracy in the EU.
* Choice *Though European Unions is several years old, the book's discussion and analytic considerations relating to citizenry, democracy, collective action and bargaining, and governance remain topical. Indeed, the book's central claims are worth revisiting considering the trade union and labor resistance to austerity measures being implemented throughout Europe today.
* Critical Sociology *In European Unions, Roland Erne offers an original and compelling view of how trade unions can contribute to remedying the European Union's 'democratic deficit.' He argues that unions can do so if they mobilize collective action in EU decision-making processes as opposed to alternative 'technocratic' or 're-nationalizing' strategies. Theoretically and through case studies, he analyzes the conditions under which unions are likely to adopt strategies that have democratizing effects on EU governance.
-- Andrew Martin, The Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
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