‘With the law behind us’: Resource mobilisation and legal repertoires in the Peruvian labour movement

Abstract

In contrast to the emphasis placed on the links between political parties and trade unions in many Global South labour studies, this article underscores the importance of analysing the role of legal advisors in labour dynamics. Focusing on the Peruvian experience, the author examines how legal advisors leveraging their networks and expertise have replaced activists as crucial players in a period of crisis in the country’s political party system. Based on extensive field research with trade unions and lawyers, the study highlights how this shift has influenced three interrelated aspects of labour strategies: the development of norms within the organisation, the framing of challenges faced by unions, and the choice of mobilisation repertoires, which have increasingly centred on legal proceedings rather than public demonstrations. The article explores the empirical and theoretical implications of these findings for labour studies in Latin America.