How do employers shape trade union revitalisation strategies towards migrant workers? Evidence from the German shipbuilding industry

ABSTRACT Trade unions and works councils in the German shipbuilding industry were among those pioneering more inclusive strategies for migrant workers. However, these efforts remained limited and partially failed. Based on a qualitative industry study, our findings shed light on the dynamics and reasons behind this path of ‘limited solidarity’ in a union stronghold. While much of the literature on (barriers to) more solidaristic employment relations has focused on union identities and activities, our article seeks to highlight how production systems and employer strategies shape union revitalisation strategies and influence their success or failure. To sustain the transnationalised, export-oriented production model, shipyards rely on an increasingly professionalised ecosystem of subcontracting firms that help them recruit, train and flexibly deploy pools of cheaper peripheral labour. While some of the literature points to regulatory policies that facilitate employers' regime-shopping strategies, our findings show that today, paradoxically, it is precisely the context of increased re-regulation of European cross-border labour markets that leads firms to develop more opaque contractual relations, creating additional obstacles and sobering experiences for organised labour. Substantial improvements are not to be expected from more power for workers alone but also require fundamental reforms.