ABSTRACT
This chapter starts by following Sartori’s example of differentiating between what is the reality of democracy (descriptions) and what the author thinks it should be (prescriptions). It provides the reader with an analytical framework for understanding democratic processes within trade unions. The chapter provides an overview of prescriptions for gender democracy and use Bachrach and Baratz’s framework to explain how they could provide new sources of power for women and other oppressed social groups. Sartori locates the problem of definition in the concept of democracy itself, noting that ‘what democracy is cannot be separated from what democracy should be’. Sartori reiterates the dynamic nature of democracy by noting that the ‘is’ and the ‘ought’ of democracy are always interfering and colliding with each other. The chapter identifies key issues in trade union democracy and made two distinctions for future analysis. It ends with the research strategy that derives from these frameworks.
