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Informal Work and Protest: Undocumented Immigrant Activism in France, 1996–2000

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  • Natasha Iskander

Abstract

Nominally, the wave of protests by undocumented immigrants that swept through France in the late 1990s successfully challenged the restrictive Pasqua immigration laws. However, despite appearances, the mass movement was at base a labour protest: undocumented workers demonstrated against immigration laws that undermined the way they navigated informal labour markets and, in particular, truncated their opportunities for skill development. Furthermore, it is proposed in this article that examining social movements for their labour content can reveal erosions of working conditions and worker power in informal sector employment. A case study of the Paris garment district is presented to demonstrate how the spread of ‘hybrid‐informality’ made legal work permits a prerequisite for working informally and relegated undocumented immigrants to lower quality jobs outside the cluster.

Suggested Citation

  • Natasha Iskander, 2007. "Informal Work and Protest: Undocumented Immigrant Activism in France, 1996–2000," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 45(2), pages 309-334, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:45:y:2007:i:2:p:309-334
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8543.2007.00616.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ganz, Marshall Louis, 2000. "Resources and Resourcefulness: Strategic Capacity in the Unionization of California Agriculture, 1959-1966," Scholarly Articles 12641805, Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
    2. Frances Fox Piven & Richard A. Cloward, 2000. "Power Repertoires and Globalization," Politics & Society, , vol. 28(3), pages 413-430, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Maite Tapia & Lowell Turner, 2013. "Across Boundaries: The Global Challenges Facing Workers and Employment Research 50th Anniversary Special Issue," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(3), pages 601-622, September.
    2. Pont-Grau, Alex & Lei, Yu-Hsiang & Lim, Joel Z.E. & Xia, Xing, 2023. "The effect of language training on immigrants’ integration: Does the duration of training matter?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 212(C), pages 160-198.
    3. Marcus Kahmann, 2015. "When the strike encounters the sans papiers movement: the discovery of a workers’ repertoire of actions for irregular migrant protest in France," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 21(4), pages 413-428, November.

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