HAK-IS: FROM A CLASS TO A TRADE UNION

Abstract

In late industrialized countries, the principles of social differentiation have tended to be projected in divisions in trade unions. Trade unions in Turkey have been largely affected by the dynamics of the modernization adventure and the unique aspects of industrialization and proletarianization. In this process, divisions in trade unions have overlapped with social cleavages. The present study addresses the establishment and growth of the Turkish Confederation of Hak Isci Trade Unions (Turkiye Hak Isci Sendikalari Konfederasyonu; Hak-Is) relying on class differentiations. While the formation of the social structure underlying the idea of Hak-Is is discussed within the Bourdieuan theory of class, its establishment and organization processes are scrutinized within proletarianization and the design and change of industrial organization. Thus, it may be claimed that the formation of the confederation has been initiated by the class-cultural divisions that dominate Turkey’s social sphere rather than the culture and identity-based organizations considered grounds for classlessness claims. The rise of Hak-Is is discussed in relation to union practices that are all compatible with the conditions dictated by the new industrial regime. Finally, the paper focuses on the confederation’s struggle practices in industrial relations and the class consciousness of workers adopting a religious identity. In this regard, it may be asserted workers develop alternative resistance strategies apart from their collective class identities.