Trade Unions and Migrant Workers

New Contexts and Challenges in Europe

ILERA出版系列

Edited by Stefania Marino, Work and Equalities Institute, The University of Manchester, UK, Judith Roosblad, Inspectorate of Social Affairs and Employment and Rinus Penninx, Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands

This timely book analyses the relationship between trade unions, immigration and migrant workers across eleven European countries in the period between the 1990s and 2015. It constitutes an extensive update of a previous comparative analysis – published by Rinus Penninx and Judith Roosblad in 2000 – that has become an important reference in the field. The book offers an overview of how trade unions manage issues of inclusion and solidarity in the current economic and political context, characterized by increasing challenges for labour organizations and rising hostility towards migrants.

‘A significant contribution to the literature, it provides a wealth of reference material for scholars or practitioners interested in European trade unions or specific European labour markets, a clear and relevant framework for analysis, and valuable longitudinal and geographical comparative analysis.’
- - - - - -Clara Turner, etui

‘This timely book offers not only richly textured studies of European trade union responses to the influx of immigrant workers across the continent, but also an insightful comparative analysis. Building on an earlier volume that the editors published at the turn of the 21st century, this one focuses on the new challenges posed by growing economic globalization, trade union decline and the surge of xenophobia among European workers. It deserves a prominent spot on the bookshelf of anyone interested in labor movements and migration, not only in Europe but worldwide.’
- - - - - -Ruth Milkman, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, US

‘Trade Unions and Migrant Workers updates the classic "three-dilemmas" thesis of Penninx and Roosblad, demonstrating its continuing relevance in today's shifting migration context. Drawing on national case studies of union responses to labour migration, it shows that while the balance of power and incentive structures unions face have shifted, the fundamental strategic dilemmas posed to unions by labour migration remain the same. This book will be a go-to citation for me in the coming years.’
- - - - - -Nathan Lillie, University of Jyväskylä, Finland

'The labour market integration of migrant workers and of workers with a migration background is an increasingly sensitive puzzle for employment services, employers and especially politicians across Europe. In this puzzle, trade unions have an enormous role, which is too often neglected and which varies across countries, issues and time. This book by an impressive team of experts provides a long needed systematic and sympathetic analysis and will be the central reference for both research and policy debates for years to come.'
- - - - - -Guglielmo Meardi, University of Warwick, UK

‘In recent years, immigration has posed major political and economic challenges for western societies. Whether and how to integrate or restrict immigrant workers is a burning question for politicians and activists across the spectrum. Of particular importance are the attitudes of trade unions – organizations well situated either to exclude or to craft strategies of inclusion. In this fine book, experienced researchers offer a comprehensive study of contrasting union approaches across eleven European countries. Findings are informative, surprising, and couldn’t be more timely.’
- - - - - -Lowell Turner, Cornell University, US

‘This work provides a relevant comparative and detailed description of how the early slogan “Proletarians of all countries, unite!” (Karl Marx, 1848) has been put into practice in Europe in the 21st century. This presented a huge challenge for the (re)construction of worker solidarity and the organized defence of social rights. This book sheds important light on how further European social construction could progress.’
- - - - - -Albert Martens, KU Leuven, Belgium