Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Marburg, 1905. / "Thesen" inserted at end. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

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Colombia is the worst country to be a trade unionist in the world. Approximately 3,000 workers have been assassinated in the last 30 years, the state, paramilitary organizations and some multinationals being responsible for most of the murders. This fact highlights the importance of researching the mechanisms of mass violence against trade unionists including the mechanisms on part of the trade unionists that keep trade unionism alive. Because of the importance of studying power and resistance as part of social change, this thesis presents an ethnography of political violence against the labourers and the trade unionists that work for Pacific Rubiales Energy in the department of Meta, with focus on how those trade unionists resist such violence with an open resistance to both political violence and coercive capital accumulation. I state that the trade unionists, by adapting their list of demands to the locals' social and environmental needs, overstep corporatist trade unionism allowing them to break the social and physical death imposed by the state, the mafias and the multinational. I argue that the trade unionists' open resistance not only allows them to continue their social struggle and to challenge the violence exerted against them, but permits them to modernize a country that sustains a semi-feudal structure beneficial for the multinationals, the mafia barons and the economic and political elites by challenging their corrupt and murderous relations.

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This thesis examines the relationship between Ulster unionists and the United States during the Home Rule era from 1880 to 1920. As they fought to uphold the Union, Ulster unionists reacted to Irish-American involvement in the Irish nationalist movement with anxiety and fear of the impact on a potential Dublin parliament. At the same time, unionists cultivated an image of a violent and extremist Irish-America in order to counter Irish nationalism and support their own movement. Unionists condemned the American funding of Irish nationalism and United States government interference on the Irish question. However, they were also anxious to show that unionism had international appeal, seeking American support against Home Rule and promoting a self-image of close ties to the United States. This thesis argues that Ulster unionists took a multifaceted and paradoxical approach to America, repudiating American involvement in the Irish nationalist movement while attempting to find opportunities to advance the cause of unionism in the United States. Throughout the Home Rule period, the Ulster unionist record of appeals and responses to the United States was marked by unevenness and contradictions which limited their effectiveness. However, unionists increasingly used an idealized, imagined America to support their own movement. They cited American historical and constitutional examples and fostered an Ulster identity based in part on Scotch-Irish heritage and Protestant connections. Ulster unionists were less insular and more internationally focused than they are generally portrayed. Chapter I introduces the historical context and historiographic framework in which the thesis operates. Chapters II and III provide an overview of the relationship between Ulster unionists and the United States from 1880 to 1920. During this period, unionists attempted to garner American support for their movement while contemporaneously responding to Irish-American nationalism and the involvement of the United States government on the Irish question. Subsequent chapters are arranged thematically, examining the elements of the Ulster unionists’ American strategy. Chapter IV investigates Scotch-Irish ethnic revival and associational culture in the United States, analyzing continued links to Ireland and attitudes toward Irish Home Rule. Chapter V provides case-studies of unionist visits to the United States as they endeavored to counter nationalist influence and build up a unionist following. Chapter VI explores the interconnection of religion and politics in Ulster’s relationship with America. Chapter VII examines the impact of American history and politics on the Ulster unionist movement. Chapter VIII concludes that the inability of Ulster unionists to effectively deal with the United States in the present day has roots in the relationship between unionists and America during the Home Rule era.

The Conservative governments of 1979-1997 were determined to reduce what they saw as "excessive union power". A succession of Employment and Trade Union Acts designed to undermine collective organisation and therefore trade union power were passed. The common perception tends to be that trade union power has been severely curtailed; however, some researchers suggest that very little has changed on the shopfloor. The main aim of the research was to ascertain what trade union members thought about the power of their trade unions. The focus of the study was on the local and workplace union organisations of the ABEU and UNISON. The research involved a case study approach. Data was obtained through the use of observation, interviews, questionnaires and the analysis of documentary evidence. It is concluded that trade union power is still a reality in the 199Os, though that power may be looked upon differently depending whether the focus is on unions at a national level or within the workplace. National unions may have changed but workplace organisations appear to remain much the same as they always have; some workplace organisations are effective and others do not appear to be as successful at achieving their aims. The success of workplace trade unionism is dependent upon the personalities and styles of working of the lay representatives. The legislation appears to have had little effect on independent workplace union organisations, though claims that the legislation had reduced trade union power appear to have been taken at face value, even by union members. As long as effective lay representatives are forthcoming there is no reason why unions at workplace level should not continue protecting their members' interests well into the 21st century.