This article examines an unusual experiment in Brazil with an employee “social dialogue” process established at the BASF chemical company, following the broad outlines of European works councils (EWCs) created in the 1990s under European Union requirements for large companies operating in that region. The new representation-cum-consultation scheme was created under a global push by BASF’s German headquarters to emulate EWCs in its various regional operations overseas, though also in response to union pressures. Once the structure was in place, management attempted, with at least partial success, to carry out a pre-emptive strategy of “venue-shifting.” Nonetheless, unions avoided institutionalized co-optation or management “divide and rule” and expanded the agenda of consultation and negotiation beyond their traditional scope. Third-party union-linked monitoring—quite distinct from typical “independent monitoring”—helped raise the salience and legitimacy of various union and worker grievances.
Anner, Mark, and Peter Evans.2004. Building bridges across a double divide: Alliances between U.S. and Latin American labour and NGOs. Development in Practice14:1/2 (February).
2.
Bain, Trevor, and Kim Hester .2003. Carrot or stick? How MNCs have responded to the European Works Council directive. In Multinational companies and global human resource strategies, ed. William N. Cooke, 305-28. Westport, CT, and London: Quorum.
3.
Beaupain, Thérèse , Steve Jeffreys, and Rachel Annand2003. Early days: Belgian and U.K. experiences of European Works Councils . In Multinational companies and global human resource strategies , ed. William N. Cooke, 329-46. Westport, CT, and London: Quorum.
4.
Bresciani, Luís Paulo.1994. Da Resistência à Contratacão: Tecnologia, Trabalho e Acão Sindical no Brazil. Brasília : SESI-DN.
5.
Cook, Maria Lorena.2007. The politics of labor reform in Latin America: Between flexibility and rights. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press.
6.
de Faria, José Henrique.1987. Comissões de fábrica: poder e trabalho nas unidades produtivas. Curitiba: Ed. Criar.
7.
Esbenshade, Jill.2004. Monitoring sweatshops: Workers, consumers and the global apparel industry. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
8.
ICEM. 2006. Red de Trabajadores em la BASF América del Sur, Enero 2006.
9.
Lecher, Wolfgang, Bernhard Nagel, and Hans-Wolfgang Platzer, eds. 2002. European works councils: Between statutory framework and social dynamics. Aldershot: Ashgate.
10.
Martin, Scott B.2000. Working in the global factory: The social embedding of flexibility in the automobile industries of Brazil, Mexico, and Southern U.S . Doctoral dissertation, Columbia University.
11.
Rodrigues, Iram Jácome.1990. Comissão de fábrica e trabalhadores na indústria. Rio de Janeiro: Cortez/FASE.
12.
Royle, Tony, and Brian Towers.2003. Regulating employee interest representation: The case of McDonald’s in the European Union. In Multinational companies and global human resource strategies, ed. William N. Cooke, 347-68. Westport, CT, and London: Quorum.
13.
Seidman, Gay W.2007. Beyond the boycott: Labor rights, human rights, and transnational activism. New York: Russell Sage .
14.
Streeck, Wolfgang.1992a. Social institutions and economic performance: Studies of industrial relations in advanced capitalist economies. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
15.
---. 1992b. Training and the new industrial relations: A strategic role for unions? In The future of labour movements, ed. Marino Regini, 225-69. London: Sage.
16.
Thelen, Kathleen Ann.1991. Union of parts: Labor politics in postwar Germany . Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
17.
Turner, Lowell.1991. Democracy at work: Changing world markets and the future of labor unions. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
18.
Veiga, João Paulo, and Scott B. Martin.2004. Transnational firms and corporate social responsibility in Brazil: Labor rights in the BASF corporation under the United Nations global compact. Paper presented to the meetings of the Latin American Studies Association, Las Vegas, October 7-9.
19.
ICEM. "Rede de Trabalhadores na BASF América do Sul," August 2004.
20.
Lecher, Wolfgang, Bernhard Nagel, and Hans-Wolfgang Platzer, eds. The Establishment of European Works Councils: From Information Committee to Social Actor. Aldershot: Ashgate, 1999.
21.
Lecher, Wolfgang, Hans-Wolfgang Platzer, and Stefan Rub, eds. European Works Councils: Developments, Types and Networking. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2001.
22.
Lengyel, Miguel, and Pedro da Motta Veiga. "International Trends on Labor Standards: Where Does Mercosur Fit In?"Paper presented to the Congress of the Latin American Studies Association, San Juan, Puerto Rico, March 15-18, 2006.
23.
Lopes, Fernando."BASF fecha fábrica de agroquímicos em SP."Valor Econômico, Decmeber 4, 2002.
24.
"OECD Guidelines for Multinationals 2000." Trade Union Advisory Committee and Instituto Observatório Social, Florianópolis, Santa Catarin, Brazil, 2003.
25.
Ross, George, and Andrew Martin."European Integration and the Europeanization of Labor." Working Paper 1998/126, Instituto Juan March, Madrid, December 1998.
26.
Silveira, Virgínia."BASF exibe sua complexa gestão ambiental,"Gazeta Mercantil, November 13, 2002.
