ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a few impressions of possible directions in which transnational American labour history could be developed, following on from the work that has already been done by a minority of American and non-American labour historians. It focuses on the expressions of transnationalism in labour movements, as they become apparent in organizational practices and repertoires of contention. On several occasions American labour organizations have served as role models for workers in other countries. Transnational diffusion of American organizational models took place through migration and remigration, sailors, cross-border activities and conscious ‘foreign policy’. Transnational workers’ solidarity is a richly varied phenomenon and can have many points of departure. The forms of transnationalism are all within the range of ‘classical’ labour history; they predominantly apply to workers’ movements, and in particular to the institutional aspects of these movements. The chapter distinguishes three relevant aspects: solidarity; organizational models; and industrial relations.
