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No Panacea for Success: Member Activism, Organizing and Union Renewal

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  • Robert Hickey
  • Sarosh Kuruvilla
  • Tashlin Lakhani

Abstract

The precipitous decline in union density and influence around the world has spawned a growing body of scholarship on union renewal. While this literature evidences lively debates regarding the efficacy of different renewal strategies, many argue that the path to renewal is paved through increased member activism. In this article, we question that premise. We examine the importance of rank‐and‐file union member activism in 44 cases of organizing campaigns in the United States and in the UK. Our review of these cases reveals little support for the notion that member activism is indispensable to union renewal in general, and successful organizing campaigns in particular. Our findings provide additional insight into the debate over top‐down and bottom‐up strategies for renewal, and raise several questions for future research regarding when, under what conditions, and under what rules worker activism matters for labour union renewal.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert Hickey & Sarosh Kuruvilla & Tashlin Lakhani, 2010. "No Panacea for Success: Member Activism, Organizing and Union Renewal," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 48(1), pages 53-83, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:48:y:2010:i:1:p:53-83
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8543.2009.00743.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Suzanne Muna, 2017. "Partners in protest: parents, unions and anti-academy campaigns," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(4), pages 326-344, July.
    3. Michael David Maffie, 2022. "The global ‘hot shop’: COVID‐19 as a union organising catalyst," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(3), pages 207-219, May.
    4. Tom Farnhill, 2018. "Union Renewal and Workplace Greening — Three Case Studies," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 56(4), pages 716-743, December.
    5. John Kallas, 2023. "Retooling militancy: Labour revitalization and fixed‐duration strikes," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 61(1), pages 68-88, March.
    6. Edmund Heery, 2015. "Unions and the organising turn: Reflections after 20 years of Organising Works," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 26(4), pages 545-560, December.
    7. Kim Voss, 2010. "Democratic dilemmas: union democracy and union renewal," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 16(3), pages 369-382, August.
    8. Ann Cecilie Bergene & Cathrine Egeland, 2016. "Interventionism as a union strategy? The strategies of the Norwegian Nurses Organisation in relation to temporary agency work," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 22(4), pages 521-534, November.
    9. Bradon Ellem & Caleb Goods & Patricia Todd, 2020. "Rethinking Power, Strategy and Renewal: Members and Unions in Crisis," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 58(2), pages 424-446, June.
    10. Linda Briskin, 2011. "The militancy of nurses and union renewal," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 17(4), pages 485-499, November.
    11. Simon Pek, 2019. "Rekindling Union Democracy Through the Use of Sortition," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 155(4), pages 1033-1051, April.
    12. Peter Gahan & Andreas Pekarek, 2013. "Social Movement Theory, Collective Action Frames and Union Theory: A Critique and Extension," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(4), pages 754-776, December.
    13. Caroline Murphy, 2016. "Fear and Leadership in Union Organizing Campaigns," SAGE Open, , vol. 6(1), pages 21582440156, January.
    14. Mélanie Dufour-Poirier & Mélanie Laroche, 2015. "Revitalising young workers' union participation: a comparative analysis of two organisations in Quebec (Canada)," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5-6), pages 418-433, November.
    15. Melanie Simms, 2015. "Accounting for Greenfield Union Organizing Outcomes," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 53(3), pages 397-422, September.
    16. Jan Czarzasty & Katarzyna Gajewska & Adam Mrozowicki, 2014. "Institutions and Strategies: Trends and Obstacles to Recruiting Workers into Trade Unions in Poland," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 52(1), pages 112-135, March.
    17. Jack Fiorito & Irene Padavic & Philip S. DeOrtentiis, 2015. "Reconsidering Union Activism and Its Meaning," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 53(3), pages 556-579, September.
    18. Monica Bielski Boris & Jeff Grabelsky, 2014. "Building Power Together: Union Support for Central Labour Bodies," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 52(4), pages 682-704, December.
    19. Gregor Gall & Jack Fiorito, 2012. "Union Commitment and Activism in Britain and the United States: Searching for Synthesis and Synergy for Renewal," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 50(2), pages 189-213, June.
    20. Peter Fairbrother, 2015. "Rethinking trade unionism: Union renewal as transition," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 26(4), pages 561-576, December.
    21. Vincent Pasquier & Thibault Daudigeos & Marcos Barros, 2020. "Towards a New Flashmob Unionism: The Case of the Fight for 15 Movement," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 58(2), pages 336-363, June.
    22. Jack Fiorito & Irene Padavic & Zachary Russell, 2014. "Union Beliefs and Activism: A Research Note," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 35(4), pages 346-357, December.
    23. Rothstein, Sidney A., 2019. "Innovation and precarity: Workplace discourse in twenty-first century capitalism," MPIfG Discussion Paper 19/8, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies.

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