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Getting together or breaking apart? Trade union strategies, restructuring and contingent workers in Southern Europe

Author

Listed:
  • Andreas Kornelakis

    (King’s College London, UK)

  • Horen Voskeritsian

    (University of the West of England, Bristol, UK)

Abstract

The article considers the strategies of trade unions towards the representation of call centre workers. Using a comparative case study, it examines the divergent union responses to the growth of contingent labour by looking at the telecommunications industries in Italy and Greece. Although the trade unions in Italy pursued inclusive strategies embracing the call centre workers and negotiating the restructuring of the whole sector, the unions in Greece followed a policy of exclusion leaving call centre workers outside representation and negotiating their internal restructuring. The article argues that the different union identities, and the diverse power resources and internal organizational politics help explain the variation in the trade unions’ strategic responses.

Suggested Citation

  • Andreas Kornelakis & Horen Voskeritsian, 2018. "Getting together or breaking apart? Trade union strategies, restructuring and contingent workers in Southern Europe," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 39(2), pages 357-375, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ecoind:v:39:y:2018:i:2:p:357-375
    DOI: 10.1177/0143831X15627500
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    References listed on IDEAS

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