Mobilization and Change in a Trade Union Setting: Environment,Structures and Action

Abstract

This case study, based on data collected from archival and interview sources, describes the variable efficacy over a 24-year period of a union-based women's committee. A theoretical model was developed that identified environmental factors, union and committee structures, and committee characteristics as variables that might affect the committee's effectiveness. Outcomes of three types were considered: structural changes that would benefit women, increased female participation in union decision making, and improved clauses in the collective agreement especially relevant to women. The study shows that while environmental factors and formal structures play an important role in achieving mobilization and change, the actions of the Social Movement Organization (SMO) itself, and of all the parties potentially affected by the SMO, are equally critical. The social movement literature complements the industrial relations and feminist organizational literatures in explaining the processes involved in successful collective action.