The Labour Movement in the Global South: Trade Unions in Sri Lanka

Workers and trade unions in the global South, or the poorer economies made up of Asian, African and Latino workers, are faced with a range of challenges. The book explains why unions in Sri Lanka illustrate a much broader phenomenon of the global South in general, where most workers operate outside the terrain of formal labour markets.The author identifies key theoretical dimensions taken by unions and labour groupings, and then provides three case studies ' nurses, tea plantation workers, garment factory workers - that show how these dimensions operate in practice. The country the book examines, Sri Lanka, despite the lack of scholarly attention it deserves, is very much in the news as a potential tourist destination or another Southern state entrenched in ethnic violence and human rights violations. The book shows the roots of those conflicts not just in the policies adopted by the state and those with power, but also in the actions taken and not taken by oppositional groups, particularly by trade unions. The book is based on extensive original research, covering roughly the last three decade of 'free' market policies, including analyses of events within the past year. By connecting theory closely with evidence, the book illustrates how the empowerment of workers emerges from a self-transformation of unions, with a global sense of local places.