Workers, Unions and Plant Closures

• In Event: 397 - Section on Labor and Labor Movements Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Section on Labor and Labor Movements Roundtables (one-hour). Table 01. Shifting Labor Conditions in the Wake of the Great Recession

Abstract

In many working-class communities, a litany of plant closures and the crumbling industrial landscape has meant a significant decline in union presence, a loss of collective spirit, and a dispirited will toward collective action. Based on interviews with over 50 unionized industrial workers who recently experienced a plant closure and the local union leaders who were involved in negotiating the closure agreements, the authors explore the reactions of the workers toward their unions as they face unemployment and uncertain futures. This paper examines the workers’ relationship to their union and the role of the local as the plant is dismantled. How do workers experience the dismantling of their local and the loss of relationships with their union brothers and sisters during a plant closure? We assess the workers’ reactions to the level of union support during the process of closure and the workers’ evaluation of the negotiated settlement. We argue that the union’s role in the process of plant closure, the final settlement, and the differential outcomes for various groups of workers shook the confidence of a committed union membership and has raised questions regarding the efficacy of the collective bargaining process for workers in their time of crisis. The paper raises questions about how unions react to closure, workers’ priorities with regard to settlements, and the impact of de-unionization on workers and their communities.

Authors

• Norene Pupo, York University

• Ann Doris Duffy, Brock University