Moving out of the comfort zone? Trade union revitalisation and corporate social responsibility

Abstract

In recent decades, trade unions have employed a range of revitalisation strategies aimed at regaining lost power. A relatively neglected area within the literature on revitalisation concerns union engagement with corporate social responsibility. Locating trade unions within a classification of civil society organisations from the political science literature, this article presents a typology of the multiple ways in which trade unions can engage with corporate social responsibility. Data from a pan-European study across 11 countries are used to illustrate the various ways in which unions are attempting to move out of their traditional ‘comfort zone’ with respect to corporate social responsibility, each of which presents them with both new opportunities and challenges. We show how trade unions are working on different ‘pressure points’ and act as purposeful agents within certain organisational parameters and particular national frameworks. In sum, the article considers the potential that corporate social responsibility provides for trade unions, and reflects on the likely direction of revitalisation debates.