ABSTRACT
Labour movements in the economically developed capitalist countries are weaker today than they have been in decades. And, by a large variety of key quantitative and qualitative indicators US unions are undoubtedly the weakest of the lot, unable to defend the interests of American workers in the most basic of ways. Parallel to these developments are the accelerated pace of what is commonly referred to as ‘globalization’, the greater economic integration of large parts of the world, the more rapid movement of goods (trade), capital (investment) and sometimes labour (migration), both among the more economically developed countries (EDCs) and between these latter entities and the economically lesser developed countries (LDCs). Some have argued that globalization is an inaccurate term, since its defining characteristic is its neoliberal character. Some have also argued that this globalization is largely responsible for the weakening of labour movements in the so-called northern countries, especially the United States. This chapter will attempt to explore these questions, especially with respect to the United States. First, however, one must understand the contours of each phenomenon in greater detail, i.e. in their specificity.
