ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the analysis of the impact of globalization on regulatory character and reform. The work of activists at both national and international level was an important dimension of globalization that contested hegemonic forms of both sovereignty and globalization. The need to raise awareness of workers about the negative sides of globalization was critical for activists. The importance of taking account of sovereignty was well illustrated in the research on the difficulty well-meaning foreigners had in generating enthusiasm for improvements in safety standards. The weaknesses of regulatory reforms moulded by traditional Thai regulatory character led activists and others to draw on international models that they saw as providing greater potential for improvement. The World Bank were shaken by globalization protests which saw it, not as a force for good, but as inhumane and siding with the oppressors over the oppressed.
