Abstract
The aim of this chapter is to outline the reality and diversity of trade union initiatives within communities, especially Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Communities in the United Kingdom. It presents three cases which outline some of the ways trade unions have engaged with local communities. It does not claim to present a representative set of cases. However, the chapter uses the cases to formulate a series of arguments. The first is that there is no set template as far as community initiatives are concerned. The second is that many of the initiatives work through a variety of structures and strategies. The third is that community unionism can emerge even when it is not an explicit or enunciated objective. However, the chapter does conclude by arguing that the absence of community structures and clear alliances makes this dimension of trade union work uneven. Moreover, those trade unionists engaged with this dimension, whether they emerge from the official apparatus of the union or from the workplace, see community work as an aspect of their portfolio of activities and roles despite the absence of formal trade union rhetoric and policy to this end. In terms of those who actually develop these initiatives one detects in our cases they do so through their own initiatives and concerns that they develop.
The chapter draws and develops cases and arguments presented in the following report: Martinez Lucio, M. and Perrett, R. (2007) Social Inclusion and Representation Strategies in the Workplace and Community: Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Workers and Innovative Trade Union Responses (Feb), Bradford University School of Management and the TUC, ISBN* - 978 1 85143 245 5 (1 85143 245 0).
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© 2009 Miguel MartÃnez Lucio and Robert Perrett
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Lucio, M.M., Perrett, R. (2009). Strategies in Search of Structures: The Real World of Community Unionism in Relation to Black and Minority Ethnic Communities. In: McBride, J., Greenwood, I. (eds) Community Unionism. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230242180_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230242180_4
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