Organising Labour in Globalising Asia

As the sixth and final volume of 'The New Rich in Asia Series' on emerging social forces in Asia, this book is centred on the self-organising capacities of industrial workers. Unlike some other volumes on this topic, it is not restricted to the rise and operations of unions, but also covers workers' involvement in organisations not normally classified as 'industrial' - namely non-governmental organisations (NGOs) - as well as instances of activism where workers combine outside any formal body. This broad approach is consistent with labour organising being understood as the collective responses of workers to the various dilemmas they face through their incorporation into capitalist class relations. The book is not written as a series of country level reports on the state of Asian labour movements; instead, the nine main chapters are case studies of the self-organising capacities of different workers in defined local settings. Each of the studies nevertheless engages with disparate debates around the theme of industrialising Asia.