L’action politique syndicale Organized Labor & Political Action

Résumé

L’auteur étudie en premier lieu la notion d'action politique syndicale. Après avoir relevé les divers usages du terme, il propose une définition fonctionnelle en distinguant entre objectifs et méthodes. L'action politique syndicale peut avoir une triple finalité et elle est de deux sortes. De là, l’auteur décrit trois modèles analytiques et les caractérise. Puis, se basant sur des considérations d'ordre empirique et d'ordre théorique, il fait un effort de prévision de l'évolution des mouvements syndicaux en cette matière.

Abstract

Many discussions on labor political action are a-scientific and emotional because they rest on a subjective approach which is due to the utilization of a marxist terminology and conceptual system. In Canada, labor political action is an increasingly important question. In this paper the author proposes a re-definition and a typological classification of labor political activities and try to build a theoritical model.

Three systems of thought are identifiable on this question in the English litterature. For the Webbs labor political action is a necessary instrumental mean for greater economic efficiency. For the marxists, unionism being a revolutionary device, a non-political union is anti-natural and reactionnary. For Selig Perlman it is the opposite point of view.

In the present paper, labor political action is defined as any behavior (attitudes and actions) of labor organizations (local, intermediary or confederal) at the level of the political system (school, city or state administrations). The political behaviors may have a triple possible purpose : a) to protect and promote the professionnal interests (social, economic...) of their members; b) to participate in the political process as an interest group (or intermediary group) on their behalf ; c ) to implement an ideology or a particular definition of the social order or the economic and political structures.

In the first case, political action is complementary to economic action. It is a necessary constituent of the industrial relations system. It is a functional supplement to weaknesses of union's economic bargaining power. From this point of view unionism appears to be a political as well as an economic institution. In the second case, unions tend to represent their members in the political process as producers holding other social roles in the community. This is also a manifest function of unionism. In doing so it becomes responsible to a certain degree of the common welfare. It can't no longer act as an institution of pure contestation. In the third case unionism exceeds its institutional functions since it no longer defines itself as the promoter of the professionnal and para-professionnal objectives of its members.

As a method of action, labor political action can be classified in partisan and non-partisan. Under the first name are : a ) the political party controlled by organized labor ; b ) the affiliation to a political party ; c ) the support of a political party. Partisan action means that labor tries to influence the political power through the electoral system. But by the non-partisan way, labor uses its bargaining power with those who govern. The non-partisan action may be : a) the practice of lobbying on all its forms ; b) the education of people on political issues ; c) the bureaucratic participation in consultative or administrative commissions of a government.

Considering these two aspects of labor political action, three models may be proposed.

         OBJECTIVE     METHOD

Model I   professionnal > para-professionnal   economic > political

Model II    professionnal = para-professionnal   economic = political

Model III   professionnal < para-professionnal   economic < political

The extreme cases, strictly professionnal and economical, and strictly para-professionnal and political cannot survive in a long period. The author contends that there are already historical forces in the occidental labor movements which will eventually lead them towards the model II. In the case of model III ideological tendancies have traditionnally come from outside but this influence is slowing down at an increasing pace. As an example, the French labor movement is borrowing more and more from the American model. On the other hand the Gompers model, becoming more and more heterogeneous and democratic in its recruiting source, is socially and politically more responsible, as president Meany put it in his « Platform proposals of the AFL-CIO to the Republican and Democratic National Conventions 1964 ».

On the other hand, after a review of the traditionnal methods of political action, the author contends that the main and more fruitful method will eventually be the bureaucratic participation to the governmental process. In such case partisan political action will be useless and detrimental.

Meanwhile labor political action will remain a tool in the hands of unionism to reach its goals. The forms of this action will depend on political decision of the labor movement, which will be function of the general environment.