DIVERSITY AND INTERNATIONAL LABOUR: SOLIDARITY FOR EVERYONE?

Transcription

1 ASAC 2005 Toronto, Ontario Gerald Hunt Ryerson University DVERSTY AND NTERNATONAL LABOUR: SOLDARTY OR EVERYONE? This paper examines the formal level of engagement with discrimination based on gender, race and sexual orientation within international labour confederations. The study was conducted with a view to assessing how closely such developments mirror national union response. The study found that the international wing of the union movement has been slow to respond to diversity issues, but most global confederations have now adopted antidiscrimination policies. Some have taken additional steps by creating special committees, delivering educational programs and creating positions on boards for representatives. The first steps were on gender and racial discrimination, and their greatest reluctance has usually been on sexual orientation. But across all issues, more change has been registered in recent years, particularly in organizations representing public sector workers. These developments may signal a new willingness on the part of labour s international wing to acknowledge and confront gender and minority inequalities in a global context. ntroduction A growing number of labour unions and federations in the industrialized world have undertaken initiatives to combat discrimination on the basis of gender, race and sexual orientation. Although labour s response and commitment to gender and minority equality has been uneven tending to be more pronounced in developed countries and in large public sector unions shifts toward more inclusive policies and practices have been impressive. This paper examines the degree to which global union confederations have undertaken similar equity initiatives, and considers the implications of such developments. National Labour Movements and Equity An expanding group of scholars explores the extent of labour movement commitment to inequalities based on dimensions other than class (Ackers, et al 1996; Briskin, 1999, Briskin, and McDermott, 1994; Creese, 1996; Colgan, 1999; Colgan and Ledwith, 2002, 2000; Curtin, 1999; Humphrey, 2002; 2000; Hunt, 1999, 2002; Hunt and Rayside, 2000; McBride, 2001; Munro, 1999; Parker, 2002; Pocock, 1997; Warren, 2003; Wets, 2000; White, 1993). Scholars acknowledge that labour movements exist in response to entrenched socio-economic disparities, but at the same time argue that labour itself has a history of exclusion and discrimination on the basis of gender and minority status. This literature is divided in its assessment of how far labour has moved in recognizing the severity of inequalities other than class, and how far it has succeeded in addressing them. Some analyses sees gender, race and minority divisions as so deeply embedded in social, economic, and political structures, and so thoroughly reflected in union cultures and structures, as to be largely unaffected by the steps taken by unions so far. Since the 1990s, however, increasing numbers of scholars have been more positive about the degree to which the policies and practices of unions have changed. While agreeing that inequalities are deeply set both within and beyond the union environment and highly resistant to change, they recognize that more and more unions have taken steps to address the discrimination and inequities cited by women and minorities. 64

2 The change that has occurred is of course uneven. n their assessment of union response to equity issues, Ledwith and Colgan (2002:21-22) found that a similar pattern emerges across national union movements, concluding that unions with the following characteristics are the most likely to take equity initiatives. Unions in industrialized countries Unions in the public sector Unions with white-collar, and professionally qualified workers Unions where women are in the majority Unions where the traditional blue-collar membership is under threat Unions that have made autonomous or self-organizing structures available to women and minorities Researchers such as Briskin (1999), Colgan and Ledwith (2002), Humphrey (2002), and Hunt (1999) note that labour s diversity initiatives include the following: inclusive non-discrimination policies hiring union-based equity officers establishing committees or caucuses based on gender and/or identity status reserving seats on boards and management committees for women and minorities undertaking educational programs collective bargaining on specific issues of concern to women and minorities political advocacy on equity issues There are important exceptions to these generalizations the auto workers union in Canada, for example, is a male-dominated, private sector union with a noteworthy record on equity issues. Overall though, large public sector unions with high female membership have been at the forefront of change. But, even within this group, there are important differences in the level of attention paid to particular equity groups and/or equity issues. Gender discrimination, for example, has been a long standing concern of many unions, whereas sexual orientation issues have only recently received a principled response. Similarly, specific issues such as maternity leave provisions have long been on labour s agenda, but other issues such as employment equity remain contested terrain within many unions, especially since it presents a significant challenge to other labour concerns such as seniority rights. nternational Labour Over the past couple of decades, the international wing of the labour movement has gained in importance and visibility. Although the globalization of production heightened the spectre of transborder labour conflict, it also sowed the seeds for increased labour co-operation. Scholars have found that as the possibility for national level solutions to labour s woes decreased, the potential for international co-operation increased (Gordon and Rurner, 2000; Harrod and O Brien, 2002; Held, 1999; Munck, 2002, 2004; Munck and Waterman, 1999; O Brien, 2000; Waddington, 1999; Waterman and Wills, 2001). Globalization also set in motion conditions more favourable to the building of alliances between labour and other groups concerned with the treatment of workers across national borders, such as NGOs, women s groups, anti-sweatshop and human rights activists. As a result, the international wing of the labour movement is increasingly seen as an important player in the push for standardizing and improving labour practices across nations. These developments have given a new prominence to organizations and confederations representing workers at the international level. The official international union movement consists of several peak institutions and union confederations grouped primarily by sector. The main peak international labour organization is the nternational Confederation of ree Trade Unions (CTU). Created in 1949, it now has 157 million members in 225 affiliated organizations in 148 countries. The 65

3 CTU is linked to ten large independent global union federations (GUs), formerly known as international trade union secretariats. These federations are organized around the sectors of education, public services, chemical and energy industries, building and work working, journalism, metalwork, transportation, textiles, food, agriculture, and communication. Public Service nternational (PS) for example, represents 20 million workers from 525 public sector trade unions in 141 countries; Educational nternational (E) is a 23 million member organization representing 284 national trade unions from 148 countries, and the nternational ederation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Worker s Union (CEM) represents more than 20 million unionized workers from nearly 120 countries. Two other important players on the international labour scene are the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), representing 74 national trade union confederations from 34 European countries, and the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (TUAC). Another important component of the international labour movement is the nternational Labour Organization (LO). ormed in 1919, it became the first specialized agency of the United Nations in Although it is not a workers organization per se since it includes representatives for government and private employers as well as labour, it is an important vehicle for worker concerns. Although the official work of the institutionalized, international union movement is largely confined to policy directives and position papers, they exert influence in a variety of ways. By adopting policies, organizing boycotts, preparing briefing papers, hosting conferences and educational activities, they attempt to influence government decision makers, trading organizations, multinationals and other businesses. Through financial, legal and educational support, as well as sanctions for noncompliance, they can also have a direct influence on the policies and practices of their nationallybased membership. The positions adopted by international union organizations may have an especially significant influence in those regions of the world where national and local labour organizations are most vulnerable, and for whom advocacy and pressure on gender issues, sensitive human rights and social issues, is especially fraught and contested. Research Questions, Methods and Results There is a growing consensus that an important outcome of increased globalization has been expanded opportunities for international labour organizations to co-operate in the pursuit of equity and justice for workers across borders. One of the ways international labour can act is to establish global standards for non-discrimination, and then support the fight to reduce and remove inequities based on gender and minority status. However, it is not clear just how far, and in what ways, international labour s formal institutions have actually moved in this direction. The goal of this study was to close this gap by assessing the extent to which an equality agenda is being established within international labour organizations. The study was conducted with a view to appraising how closely such developments mirror national union response. To do this, an assessment was undertaken of the initiatives being undertaken by international labour organizations in three of the equity areas that have received the most attention at the national level: gender, race and sexual orientation. To make this assessment, all fourteen of the major cross-sector union confederations and sector-based global union federations were contacted. nformation was collected during interviews with senior officers whose portfolios included gender and/or equality issues, as well as other staff members. Contact was also made with social movement activists within and external to the organizations. A detailed analysis of each organization s web site and relevant publications was also completed, as was a literature review for related research. The following twelve organizations agreed to participate in the study. LO - nternational Labour Organization CTU - nternational Confederation of ree Trade Unions ETUC-European Trade Union Confederation E - Education nternational 66

4 PS - Public Services nternational J - nternational ederation of Journalists UN - Union Network nternational BWW - nternational ederation of Building and Wood Workers CEM - nternational ederation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers Union T - nternational Transportation Workers U nternational Union of ood, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco, Allied Workers M - nternational Metal Workers ederation nformation was collected regarding the extent to which each organization had adopted formal policies and practices designed to confront discrimination and promote equity on the basis of gender, race and sexual orientation. Each organization was probed to determine the degree it had undertaken equity initiatives similar to ones undertaken by national union movements, as set out below: An overall non-discrimination policy? Non-discrimination policy that includes a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? Official committee/caucus for a) gender? c) race c)sexual orientation issues? Board or governing body representative specific for a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? One of more campaign geared to issues raised by a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? One or more educational program geared to a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? Priority for action relative to a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? (High, Medium, Low) Table 1 tabulates the raw scores of all organizations on these equity initiatives. Organizations were then scored on a scale of one to five. To obtain a score of five for an equity category the organization had taken up initiatives in all areas, and stood out as an advocate on the issue. Table 2 indicates the mean scores within each of the equity categories. (Note: Tables appear at end of paper) Variations across issues As is consistently true at the national level, the data highlights considerable variation across unions and diversity categories. Similar to the national response, gender has received the longest and most elaborated response at the international level. our of the twelve organizations surveyed, including the CTUs and the LO, warranted five points on the 5 point scale in relation to gender, and all of the other organizations were close at four out of five points. Every organization has antidiscrimination policies explicitly protecting women, a women s caucus or committee, and all but one have a mechanism for women s representation on their management boards. Most have an executive office devoted to women s issues, and all have undertaken targeted political campaigns and education programs to raise the profile of gender bias in the labour market and beyond. Still, there is no doubt that the serious recognition of gender inequality represents a difficult challenge for any labour organization, local, national, or international. Such recognition requires important shifts from traditional labour priorities and practices, and even the national unions most advanced in taking up gender have only moved partially in effecting transformative change. What is chronicled here, though, is the fact of early and important steps in recognizing the gender challenge at the international level: changes in formal policy, patterns of representation, and public campaigning. The development of formal policies and programs related to racial discrimination are somewhat less widespread than those on gender. All of these labour organizations have formal policies prohibiting racial discrimination, and on paper vehemently oppose racism. avouritism in the labour market on the basis of race was among the first discriminatory practices to be outlawed in the constitutional statements of all these organizations. These early developments, though, have not necessarily lead to program initiatives. The same five organizations with high rating on gender also rate high on race; cross-sector and public sector confederations tending toward a more assertively progressive record. The others, however, had taken noticeably fewer initiatives than they had on 67

5 gender, particularly in the area of formal representation. Only half of the organizations had a formal committee or caucus representing the interests of racial minorities, while all did for women. None had designated executive representation for racial minorities, while all but one did so for women. The results may well reflect the persistence of widespread racial and ethnic tensions and prejudice in many parts of the world. As well, the racial make-up of particular countries, and the complexion of the race issues at stake, varies considerably, and this may handicap the likelihood of arriving at internationally relevant positions. The diversity issue in which least progress has been made, and in which the greatest variation is evident, is sexual orientation. Only two organizations have moved in the direction of inclusive policies and practices. Most others have not taken steps to combat sexual orientation discrimination beyond inclusion in anti-discrimination policies, and several have yet to take this important first step. The caution and unevenness in take-up here was fully evident in interview responses by union officials. Sexual orientation was reported as the most combative and contentious diversity issue, with the potential to split members. A recent LO report on equality noted that resistance even to recognition of the existence of the problem (of sexual orientation discrimination) still remains fierce in most parts of the world (LO 2003:29). At the same time, though, there is evidence of important shifts in international labour s response to sexuality. Nine of the organizations (EU, CTU, EM, J, M, TGLW, U, PS, UN) formally endorsed the World Conference of Lesbian and Gay Trade Unionists held in Sydney, Australia in November One of the recommendations arising out of that conference was that international trade union confederations should move to protect lesbian and gay rights within a trade union context. Variations across sectors The range of response to diversity across union sectors reflects trends evident in those national labour movements where the most significant steps have been taken to acknowledging diversity. n other words, public sector unions are in the lead, domestically and internationally. Educational nternational and Public Sector nternational have been leaders in both the range of initiatives and the relative earliness of their responses. Both confederations have elaborate policies and programs to address issues raised by women and minorities, and attach a high priority to combating discrimination and promoting equality. PS, for example, was the first of the internationals to tackle sexual orientation issues by approving a comprehensive policy statement in 1993, followed by E in n 1999, the two organizations jointly published Working for Lesbian and Gay Members, mapping out a comprehensive strategy for trade union action. Notably, E has assisted several of their nationallybased unions to defend and protect openly gay and lesbian teachers from harassment and dismissal, in setting where there are no legal protections for this group. The area in which they fall behind the leading national unions at the national level is the lack of institutionalized representation at the executive level for racial and sexual minorities, though this is also true of all other international unions. As at the national level, organizations representing blue collar and private sector workers have moved the least, most notably on sexual orientation, to some extent on race. These tend to be the holders of the labour movement s traditional norms, and arenas in which the recognition of difference is most likely to be seen as threatening. Based on the records of national labour movements, there can be little surprise in seeing the relatively slow development of pro-diversity policy in the Building and Wood Workers international federation, and the union representing chemical, energy, and mine workers. The low ranking of the organization representing food, agriculture, hotel, restaurant, and tobacco workers is not as self-evident, though does reflect the tenacity of resistance to change in highly vulnerable sectors. That said, there is some momentum within these organizations for change. Senior staff are alert to developments at other GUs and other international institutions, and express more openness to change than they perceive in their membership. The response of cross-sector international federations is itself variegated, and slower to change than within analogous national labour congresses. The TU and the LO have noteworthy 68

6 policy records, apart from sexual orientation. The CTU included sexual orientation in its nondiscrimination language in 2000, but has gone no further with programming in this area. The LO has comprehensive policies, programs, and administrative departments, geared to combat racial and gender discrimination. But its definition of discrimination (in convention 111) does not refer to sexual orientation. n 2003, the LO published an update on workplace discrimination called Time for Equality at Work, and this made reference to sexual orientation when discussing new sources of discrimination. So far, though, the Governing Body has agreed only to debate the addition of new grounds of discrimination to Convention 111. Even The European Trade Union Confederation, where one might expect leadership, given some of the equality initiatives in the European Union, has only a moderate record on race, and a weak record on sexuality, even in terms of formal policy. Conclusion The international wing of the trade union movement is now embracing inequities beyond those presented by class, although the response has been uneven and mixed in a pattern paralleling national labour movements. ederations representing workers in the public sector, as well as those where women are the majority, and where the membership is predominately white-collar, have been the most active. Progress has been earlier and more pronounced on gender discrimination. Specific initiatives to combat racism are less evident, and initiatives to confront discrimination against sexual minorities are the least articulated. Early activism on women s concerns is helping to pave the way for a broader cohort of discrimination issues. More inclusive non-discrimination language is the most frequent equity initiative, followed by the creation of equity committees or caucuses and education programs. ormal board representation for specific equity-seeking constituencies is limited to women. The developments that have taken place in these federations reflect changing priorities and pressure from national membership, as well as increased activism inside and outside the organizations. More and more national labour movements have identified discrimination on the basis of gender, race and sexuality as legitimate labour concerns, and have subsequently brought these issues forward to the international level. These developments also reflect increased social movement activism to do with gender inequality and human rights issues within the international arena, resulting in increased pressure on these organizations to at least appear to be advancing an equity agenda within their ranks. The new directions these organizations are taking is also a reflection of the fact that they are headquartered in relatively progressive, western European settings (mainly Geneva and Brussels), where broad-based equity agendas have for some time been normalized. Not surprisingly, some of the people who work for these labour organizations pride themselves on being part of a larger orbit of activism around gender and human rights issues within their own cities and further a field, and have brought this activism to their place of employment. All of these forces for change, however, must be balanced with a variety of restraining forces. nstitutional actors with a progressive agenda can confront co-workers, board members and representatives from national unions informed by a more conservative paradigm about the proper role of women and minorities in the labour market. These actors may be out of sync with western concepts of equality, and actively fight or filibuster change in the status quo. This conflicting set of forces for and against broadening the equity agenda within global union confederations helps to explain the slowness overall, as well as the reluctance on particular issues such as sexual orientation discrimination. This study has not been able to fully assess how far international labour organizations have engaged with equality issues, because only part of the answer is found by assessing formal policy and representational structures. ormal policies provide an important platform on which further developments can take place, but are not in of themselves a measure of action, deeper cultural shifts or transformative change. However, what is clear is that equity issues are now on the formal agenda of more and more international union confederations. This signals a new willingness on the part of labour s international wing to acknowledge gender and minority inequalities within a globalized labour force, and helps create momentum to do something about it. At the very least, these formal provisions provide the grounds and mechanism for activists to push these organizations to act beyond 69

7 rhetoric and principled statements. This is particularly important in countries where political and cultural norms mitigate against the establishment of minimal labour standards on gender and minority equality, and where trans-national union pressure has the potential to alter the status quo for workers at the bottom end of employment hierarchies. This study provides evidence of a recent, but expanding equity agenda within the international union movement. t is therefore timely to more fully assess the impact of these developments on the social, political and decision-making structures of these organizations and their membership. t is also timely to assess the degree to which these developments are influencing employers and improving the working lives of women and minorities around the world. 70

8 Table 1: nternational Labour Organization and Equity nitiatives nitiative Equity group E Non-discrimination policy? nclusive non-discr. policy? Committee/caucus for group? Board Representation? P S C T U L O J U N E T U C T M B W W C E M Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Gender Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Race Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Sex orientation Y Y Y N Y Y Y Y Y N N N Gender Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Race Y Y Y Y Y N N N N N Y N Sex orientation Y Y N N N N N N N N N N Gender Y Y Y Y N Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Race N N N N N N N N N N N N Sex orientation N N N N N N N N N N N N Campaigns? Gender Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Race Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Sex orientation Y Y Y Y N N N N N N N N Education programs? Gender Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Race Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Sex orientation Y Y Y N N N N N N N N N Priority? Gender H H H H H H H H H H H H Race H H H H H H H H H H H H Sex orientation H H M M L L L L L L L L Notes: i) E - Education nternational; PS - Public Services nternational; CTU - nternational Confederation of ree Trade Unions; LO - nternational Labour Organization; J - nternational ederation of Journalists; UN - Union Network nternational; ETUC-European Trade Union Confederation; T - nternational Transportation Workers; M - nternational Metal Workers ederation; BWW - nternational ederation of Building and Wood Workers; CEM - nternational ederation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers Union; U nternational Union of ood, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco, Allied Workers ii) Y=yes; N=no; H/M/L=high/medium/low U 71

9 Table 2: Mean Score (out of 5) of nternational Labour Organizations on Equity nitiatives Organization Gender Race Sexual Mean Orientation E Education PS Public Services CTU - Confed. of ree Trade Unions LO ntern al Labour Organization J Journalists UN - Communication, Media, Entertainment ETUC - European TU Confederation T - Transportation Workers M - Metal Workers BWW - Building and Wood Workers CEM - Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers U - ood, Agriculture, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco Mean (by equity category) nitiatives: 1. Non-discrimination policy that includes a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? 2. Committees/caucuses for a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? 3. Board or governing body representative for a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? 4. Campaign(s) geared to issues raised by a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? 5. Educational program(s) geared to a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? 6. Priority for action relative to a) gender? b) race? c) sexual orientation? (H/M/L) Scoring: 5 = all initiatives/stands-out as advocate; 4 = 4-6 initiatives; 3 = 4-5 initiatives; 2=2-3initiatives;2=2-3initiatives;1=initiative; 0=no initiative References Ackers, J., C. Smith, and P. Smith, The New Workplace and Trade Unionism: Critical Perspectives on Work and Organization, London, Routledge, Briskin, L., Autonomy, Diversity, And ntegration: Unions, Women s Separate Organizing n North America And Western Europe n The Context Of Restructuring And Globalization, Women s nternational orum, 22:4 (1999), Briskin, L., and P. McDermott (eds.), Women Challenging Unions: eminism, Democracy, and Militancy. Toronto, University of Toronto Press, Cresse, G., Gendering Collective Bargaining: rom Men s Rights To Women s ssues, Canadian Review Of Sociology And Anthropology, 33: 4 (1996), Cogan,., Recognizing The Lesbian And Gay Constituency n UK Trade Unions: Moving orward n UNSON, ndustrial Relations Journal, 30:5, (1999), Colgan,., and S. Ledwith, S. Diversity, dentities And Strategies Of Women Trade Union Activists, Gender, Work And Organization, 7:4, (2000),

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