Korean Workers and Neoliberal GlobalizationOne of the most remarkable aspects of South Korea’s transition from impoverished post-colonial nation to fully-fledged industrialized democracy has been the growth of its independent and dynamic labour movement. Korean Workers and Neoliberal Globalisation examines current trends and transformations within the Korean labour movement since the 1990s. It has been a common assumption that the ‘third wave’ of democratisation, the end of the Cold War, and the spread of neoliberal globalisation in the latter part of the 20th century have helped to create an environment in which organised labour is better placed to overcome bureaucratic national unionism and transform itself into a potential counter-globalisation movement. However, Kevin Gray argues that despite the apparent continued phenomena of labour militancy and the rhetoric of anti-neoliberalism, the mainstream independent labour movement in Korea has become increasingly institutionalised and bureaucratised into the new capitalist democracy. This process is demonstrated by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions’ experience of participation in various forms of policy making forums. Gray suggests that as a result, the KCTU has failed to mount an effective challenge against processes of neoliberal restructuring and concomitant social polarisation. The Korean experience provides an excellent case study for understanding the relationship between organised labour and globalisation. Korean Workers and Neoliberal Globalisation will appeal to students and scholars of Korean studies and International Political Economy, as well as Asian politics and economics. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 86
... Employment and Redistribution programme the Grain Management Fund Great Workers' Struggle Heavy and chemical industrialization Industrial Accident Insurance International Confederation of Free Trade Unions International Labour ...
... International Labour Foundation Korean People's Action Against FTA and WTO Korean People's Solidarity Korean Power Workers' Union Labour Relations Act National Alliance for Democracy and Reunification of Korea National Council of Trade ...
... labour movement. The story of this growth is a heroic one of how male and female workers resisted the inhuman exploitation of 'miracle' economic growth and established their own democratic unions in the face of often intense government ...
... labour movement throughout the early 19905 would have suggested that the ... globalization. Such debates have arisen from the recognition that ... globalization as inexorable, all-encompassing, and as representing 2 Korean workers and ...
... globalization' that have surpassed the contemporary one in terms of international trade (Hirst and Thompson 1999) ... labour has become a key actor in challenging global neoliberal restructuring. A noteworthy aspect of the anti-WTO ...
Contents
1 | |
12 | |
2 Globalization crisis and the entrenchment of neoliberalism in Korea | 31 |
3 The rise and fall of militant labour unionism in Korea | 52 |
4 Social movement unionism and the Korean labour movement | 71 |
5 Latedemocratization and low intensity social corporatism | 92 |
6 Korean labour and the struggle against neoliberalism | 110 |
7 The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions social reform struggle | 130 |
Conclusion | 150 |
Notes | 162 |
Bibliography | 170 |
Index | 189 |