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Migrant workers navigating the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK: Resilience, reworking and resistance

Author

Listed:
  • Lilian Miles

    (School of Organisations, Economy and Society, Westminster Business School, University of Westminster, UK)

  • Tim Freeman

    (Middlesex University Business School, UK)

  • Amanda Polzin

    (School of Management and Marketing, Westminster Business School, University of Westminster, UK)

  • Rishab Reitz

    (International Rescue Committee in Berlin, Germany)

  • Richard Croucher

    (Middlesex University Business School, UK)

Abstract

Drawing on qualitative data, in this article the authors apply Katz’s conceptual framework of agency as resilience, reworking and resistance practices to theorise UK migrant workers’ responses to worsened employment conditions, stress of unemployment and reduced incomes during the Covid-19 pandemic. The article draws attention to the range of micro practices these workers adopted to survive and rework existing conditions to their advantage – actions which rarely feature in academic writing, yet which recognise those who do not ‘resist’ as conscious agents who exercise power. Meanwhile, although outright oppositional responses to deteriorating employment conditions are rare, the article demonstrates the nature of workplace union representation as a central factor in resisting managerial control. The article extends Katz’s framework by considering the ‘how’ and ‘why’ behind migrant workers’ responses, to understand better their dynamic choices of resilience, reworking and resistance practices in the chaotic circumstances of the pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Lilian Miles & Tim Freeman & Amanda Polzin & Rishab Reitz & Richard Croucher, 2024. "Migrant workers navigating the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK: Resilience, reworking and resistance," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 45(3), pages 653-673, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ecoind:v:45:y:2024:i:3:p:653-673
    DOI: 10.1177/0143831X231199874
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Eva Herman & Jill Rubery & Gail Hebson, 2021. "A case of employers never letting a good crisis go to waste? An investigation of how work becomes even more precarious for hourly paid workers under Covid," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(5), pages 442-457, September.
    2. Kavita Datta & Cathy McIlwaine & Yara Evans & Joanna Herbert & Jon May & Jane Wills, 2007. "From Coping Strategies to Tactics: London's Low‐Pay Economy and Migrant Labour," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 45(2), pages 404-432, June.
    3. Gabriella Alberti & Davide Però, 2018. "Migrating Industrial Relations: Migrant Workers’ Initiative Within and Outside Trade Unions," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 56(4), pages 693-715, December.
    4. Davide Però, 2020. "Indie Unions, Organizing and Labour Renewal: Learning from Precarious Migrant Workers," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 34(5), pages 900-918, October.
    5. Agnieszka Rydzik & Sundari Anitha, 2020. "Conceptualising the Agency of Migrant Women Workers: Resilience, Reworking and Resistance," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 34(5), pages 883-899, October.
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