Global Economy Contested: Power and Conflict across the International Division of Labour(Rethinking Globalizations)

Although much has been written on the topic of economic globalization, few volumes examine the social foundations of the global economy in a way that puts power and contestation at the forefront of the analysis. This book addresses this gap by emphasizing the contested social processes that underpin global production chains and financial structures. It demonstrates not only how the uneven effects of global economic integration impact upon workers and communities across the globe, but also how the agency of these individual and collective actors have reciprocal effects that reconfigure the terrain of global capitalism. Multidisciplinary in its approach, the book brings together an international group of social scientists who share a common interest in providing critical examinations of contemporary globalizations. With perspectives from sociologists, political scientists and political economists, it juxtaposes the examination of global trends with the diverse contexts of specific regions and countries. It features a range of case studies from North and Latin America, Europe, Africa, East and South-East Asia and post-communist Russia to explore the issues surrounding: global production chains and the international division of labour corporate social responsibility and socially responsible investing new forms of labour organizing and internationalism. It will be of interest to students and researchers in international political economy, the sociology of globalization, development studies, economic geography and labour studies.

Table of Contents:
Part 1: Reworking the International Division of Labour 1. Power, Conflict and the Production of the Global Economy Marcus Taylor 2. Globalisation and the Uneven Subsumption of Labour under Capital in Russia Simon Clarke 3. Making the `Workshop of the World’: China and the International Division of Labour Étienne Cantin and Marcus Taylor Part 2: Commodity Chains, Labour Standards and Corporate Social Responsibility 4. Restructuring and Conflict in the Global Athletic Footwear Industry: Nike, Yue Yuen and Labour Codes of Conduct Jeroen Merk 5. Offshore Production, Labour Standards and Collective Organisation in the Globalizing U.S. Garment Industry Étienne Cantin 6. Corporate Social Responsibility and Labour Market Discipline: Contesting Social Reproduction in Low-Wage America Ryan Foster Part 3: Global Finance and Socially Responsible Investing 7. Pension Fund Capitalism, Pension Fund Socialism, and Dissent from Investment Paul Langley 8. Imposing Social Responsibility?: Pension Funds and the New Politics of Development Finance Susanne Soederberg Part 4: New Directions in Labour Organising 9. Challenging Labour Market Flexibilisation: Union and Community-Based Struggles in Post-Apartheid South Africa Marlea Clarke 10. After the Collapse: Workers and Social Conflict in Argentina Viviana Patroni 11. Globalisation, Contestation and Labour Internationalism: A Transformationalist Perspective Ronaldo Munck

About the Author :
Marcus Taylor is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Global Development Studies at Queen’s University, Canada.