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Power and the Practice of Transnational Private Regulation

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  • Tim Bartley

Abstract

Corporations, NGOs, and private regulatory initiatives have taken on functions once assumed to be the domain of the state and inter-governmental organisations. While researchers are racing to assess the impacts of private rules, theoretical statements remain focused on the design, legitimation, and intermediation of private initiatives or the hegemony of neoliberal governance. This paper instead highlights the grounded practices of transnational private regulation, and it argues that much about these practices can be explained through a straightforward (but multi-faceted) analysis of power. Specifically, unpacking the practice of private regulation requires a focus on (1) the distinctive power struggles that animate different types of standard-setting projects (which should not be reduced to a single logic), (2) the saturation of private regulation with corporate power (not merely the capture of particular intermediaries), and (3) the construction of compliance in ways that accommodate state powers at the point of implementation. These points are illustrated with examples from research on private rules for land and labour and accounts of standards wars more generally.

Suggested Citation

  • Tim Bartley, 2022. "Power and the Practice of Transnational Private Regulation," New Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(2), pages 188-202, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:cnpexx:v:27:y:2022:i:2:p:188-202
    DOI: 10.1080/13563467.2021.1881471
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    Cited by:

    1. Dietz, Thomas & Biber-Freudenberger, Lisa & Deal, Laura & Börner, Jan, 2022. "Is private sustainability governance a myth? Evaluating major sustainability certifications in primary production: A mixed methods meta-study," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    2. Chunyun Li & Sarosh Kuruvilla, 2023. "Corporate codes of conduct and labour turnover in global apparel supply chains," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 61(3), pages 481-505, September.
    3. James HARRISON & Margarita PAREJO & Mark WIELGA, 2024. "The value of complaints mechanisms in the private labour regulation of GVCs: A case study of the Fair Labor Association," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 163(1), pages 73-94, March.
    4. Huw Thomas & Mark Anner, 2023. "Dissensus and Deadlock in the Evolution of Labour Governance: Global Supply Chains and the International Labour Organization (ILO)," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 184(1), pages 33-49, April.
    5. Michele Ford & Michael Gillan & Kristy Ward, 2023. "Beyond the brands: COVID‐19, supply chain governance, and the state–labor nexus," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(2), pages 172-188, April.

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