The Great Recession that followed the financial crisis of 2008 had a devastating impact on workers, leading to high levels of unemployment and underemployment, increased job insecurity and stagnant or declining wages. While the legitimation crisis of neoliberalism could be viewed as a turning point for labour internationally, the immediate response by political parties across the spectrum was one of austerity measures and cuts to welfare. As the largest collective representatives of workers, trade unions are at the forefront of mobilisations attempting to challenge this consensus. Simultaneously, they are engaging in new activities to enhance public awareness and understanding of the crucial role that trade unions play in the labour market. Thus, the 21st century crisis is creating both challenges and opportunities. Each trade union movement’s response depends on the different forms of power they possess and choose to deploy, their strategies and allegiances, and the specific socio-economic and political context in which they are situated. Questions concerning what constitutes union power and the ways in which it is being exercised and revitalized therefore represent fascinating lines of enquiry to explore. To do so, however, requires a new perspective on trade union power that recognises the significance of the media which has been overlooked in industrial relations theory. Drawing on insights from industrial relations, the sociology of media and social movement studies, this thesis proposes the concept of communicative power to trace how trade unions produce and circulate discourse through the media (either union-owned or corporate) to a mass audience. Methodologically, it uses the tripartite approach which focuses our attention onto three key communication processes involved in trade union attempts to exercise communicative power: the production of union discourse, the circulation of union discourse, and the reception of union discourse. This is applied to four cases involving seven union organisations in the UK and Denmark over a five-year period 2010-2015. Data was gathered using 40 semi-structured interviews with union officials and activists, content analysis of newspapers, union media outlets and social media, and secondary survey data. In sum, this thesis argues that the media is, and always has been, central to how trade unions exercise and revitalize power in society. And within the context of accelerating digital capitalism, it looks set to becoming an increasingly important determinant of their future trajectory.

Ce mémoire tente d’identifier la nature du lien entre les stratégies d’organisation syndicale et le résultat des campagnes de syndicalisation. À l’aide d’une étude du cas des campagnes d’organisation menées par les Travailleurs et travailleuses unis de l’alimentation et du commerce (TUAC) chez Wal-Mart au Québec, nous avons examiné l’impact que peuvent avoir différentes variables sur le succès d’une campagne. La littérature sur le renouveau syndical nous a permis d’identifier trois types de campagnes, soit la campagne traditionnelle, la campagne intégrale et la campagne de mouvement social, et nous a amenés à postuler que le type de campagne privilégié aura un effet sur l’impact de la campagne. Nos résultats nous permettent d’arriver à trois conclusions. Premièrement, nous notons deux tactiques relevant de la campagne traditionnelle ayant eu un impact positif sur le résultat des campagnes : l’utilisation de la technique du blitz et le recrutement de poteaux solides. Deuxièmement, le degré d’opposition patronale à la syndicalisation semble avoir un impact sur le degré de succès d’une campagne. Troisièmement, l’analyse des résultats nous permet de constater l’impact significatif du cadre juridique. L’un des éléments les plus importants est l’accréditation par décompte des adhésions comparativement à l’accréditation suite à un vote. / This research tries to identify the type of link between union organizing strategies and the result of the campaigns. Using the case of the United Food and Commerce Workers (UFCW) campaigns in Wal-Mart stores in Quebec, we examined the impact of different variables on the success of a campaign. A review of the literature on union renewal led us to identify three types of campaigns, the traditional campaign, the comprehensive campaign and the social movement campaign, and to postulate that the type of campaign has an effect on the impact of the campaign. Our results enable us to arrive to three conclusions. Firstly, we note that two tactics from the traditional campaign had a positive impact on the result of the campaigns: the use of the blitz technique and the significant involvement of employees in the campaigns. Secondly, the employer’s degree of opposition to unions seems to have an impact on the degree of success of a campaign. Thirdly, the analysis of the results demonstrates the impact of the legal framework. One of the most important elements is the card-check accreditation compared to the accreditation following a vote.

No description available.

Le monde du travail connaît actuellement de grandes transformations. Le modèle nord-américain d’organisation syndicale ne semble plus permettre au mouvement syndical de répondre efficacement à ces transformations, favorisant le développement de plusieurs initiatives de renouveau syndical. Pour évaluer les impacts d’initiatives de renouveau syndical, nous avons développé un modèle basé sur le concept de zone syndicale (Haiven, 2003, 2006). Nous avons dû déterminer les facteurs définissant la zone syndicale, comme la littérature était muette à ce sujet. En utilisant d’abord la théorie des déterminants de la densité syndicale (Schnabel, 2003), nous avons intégré au modèle les éléments de la théorie des ressources du pouvoir syndical (Lévesque et Murray, 2010) pour considérer les facteurs internes aux syndicats qui influencent la zone syndicale. L’intégration de ces trois théories dans un modèle unifié constitue une innovation théorique significative. Le modèle a été appliqué à deux centres de travailleurs : le Vermont Workers Center et le Centre des Travailleurs de St-Rémi. Dans les deux cas, ces initiatives ont permis d’élargir la zone syndicale. Par contre, le Centre du Vermont applique les principes du syndicalisme communautaire, en cherchant à développer du leaderhsip chez ses membres (Cranford et Ladd, 2013), alors que celui de St-Rémi applique un syndicalisme de mobilisation, où le leadership s’exerce par les organisateurs syndicaux (Camfield, 2007). Cette différence et leurs différents mandats font que les impacts des deux cas étudiés diffèrent. D’autres études sont nécessaires pour améliorer le modèle proposé. Ce dernier demeure malgré tout un outil pour les chercheurs ou les syndicats qui veulent évaluer des initiatives ou des pratiques syndicales et permettre, à terme, d’augmenter l’influence du mouvement syndical sur le marché du travail et la société. / The labor market is undergoing major changes. The north-american model of union organization seems to not allow the labor movement to respond effectively to these changes, which have contributed to the development of several union renewal initiatives. To evaluate the impacts of union renewal initiatives, we have developped a model based on the concept of union zone (Haiven 2003, 2006). We had to determine the factors defining the union zone, as the litterature was silent about that subject. Using at first the theory of the determinants of the union density (Schnabel, 2003), we have integrated elements of the theory of union power resources (Lévesque and Murray, 2010) to the model to consider the internal factors for the unions that can influence the union zone. The integration of these three theories in one unified model constitute a significant theoritical innovation. The model was applied to two workers centers : the Vermont Workers Center and the St-Rémi Workers Center. In both cases, these union renewal initiatives have enlarged the union zone. On the other side, the Vermont center applies the principles of community unionism, seeking to develop leadership among its members (Cranford and Ladd, 2003), while the St-Rémi center applies the principles of mobilization unionism, in which leadership is exercised rather by union organizers (Camfield, 2007). This difference and their different mandates made the impacts in the two studied cases different. Further studies are needed to improve the proposed model. It remains a tool that can be useful for researchers or unions who want to evaluate the impacts of union initiatives or practices and, eventually, increase the influence of the labor movement on the labor market and society.