Conglomerate Unions and Transformations of Union Democracy

摘要

Confronted with membership losses and declining bargaining power, trade unions have engaged in both political and organizational responses. A frequent type of organizational response has involved the creation of conglomerate unions, which bring together workers from various sectors and occupations. Pointing out a number of parallels between organizational developments in trade unions and political parties, this article analyses the emergence of conglomerate unions as a cause and consequence of changing conceptions of union democracy. Drawing on two in-depth case studies conducted in France and Germany, the article examines how trade unions perceive their situation and how they define a reform rationale based on increasing their organizational efficiency' and effectiveness'. In accordance with this rationale, unions engage in mergers and create larger conglomerates, thereby centralizing decision-making bodies and professionalizing their staff. The reform of trade unions' internal organization, in turn, affects unions' capacity for interest aggregation and representation.