Abstract
Things are going badly for the labour movement. Not only in Europe, but also in large parts of the rest of the world. Trade unions have lost much of their power and currently only organise six percent of workers worldwide. In many countries, they have lost their allies, the social democratic and communist labour parties, either because these parties went under or because they adopted a neoliberal path.
This downward trend has two main effects: Firstly, it is linked to the rise of far-right parties that pit the ‘native’ workers against ‘the foreigners’. Secondly, NGOs are sometimes taking over activities that were traditionally the responsibility of the international trade union movement, such as the fight against child labour. The cry ‘The International fights for human rights!’ has fallen silent.
Van der Linden explains the most important types of movement in this crisis. He shows how the social democratic parties that emerged in the late 19th century achieved parliamentary breakthroughs in the years after the First World War, but were weakened by shifts in social structures at the end of the 20th century.
The author also discusses the historical characteristics of the ‘Bolshevik model’ as it developed in Russia and recalls the various stages of the international trade union movement.
This downward trend has two main effects: Firstly, it is linked to the rise of far-right parties that pit the ‘native’ workers against ‘the foreigners’. Secondly, NGOs are sometimes taking over activities that were traditionally the responsibility of the international trade union movement, such as the fight against child labour. The cry ‘The International fights for human rights!’ has fallen silent.
Van der Linden explains the most important types of movement in this crisis. He shows how the social democratic parties that emerged in the late 19th century achieved parliamentary breakthroughs in the years after the First World War, but were weakened by shifts in social structures at the end of the 20th century.
The author also discusses the historical characteristics of the ‘Bolshevik model’ as it developed in Russia and recalls the various stages of the international trade union movement.
Original language | German |
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Place of Publication | Vienna |
Publisher | Promedia |
Number of pages | 216 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 978-3-85371-923-7 |
ISBN (Print) | 978-3-85371-537-6 |
Publication status | Published - 2024 |