Down But Not Out: The Recovery of a Downsized Labor Movement in Argentina (2002-2006)

The shift from state-led ISI to more market-oriented economic models often has the result of shrinking and demobilizing the labor movement. Yet, evidence from Argentina suggests that a subsequent resurgence of even a down-sized labor movement may occur and furthermore that “neocorporatist” patterns may be established in the new economic context. We examine the recent resurgence of the Argentine labor movement and the establishment of a new form of interest intermediation, more akin to that in the more coordinated economies in Europe than to either liberal or traditional populist forms. We argue that the emergence of such a pattern may be driven by economic and political factors that are both immediate and longer-term. In addition to the short-term condition of the labor market and the political strategy of the government in power, of longerterm importance are structural and institutional conditions that derive from the earlier process of market reform, specifically the nature of sectoral shifts in the economy and the degree of labor law deregulation affecting the ”associational power” of unions. Down But Not Out: The Recovery of a Downsized Labor Movement in Argentina (2002-2006): Sebastián Etchemendy Torcuato Di Tella University, Buenos Aires Ruth Berins Collier University of California, Berkeley The shift from state-led ISI to more market-oriented economic models often has the result of shrinking and demobilizing the labor movement. Yet, evidence from Argentina suggests that a subsequent resurgence of even a down-sized labor movement may occur and furthermore that "neocorporatist" patterns may be established in the new economic context. We examine the recent resurgence of the Argentine labor movement and the establishment of a new form of interest intermediation, more akin to that in the more coordinated economies in Europe than to either liberal or traditional populist forms. We argue that the emergence of such a pattern may be driven by economic and political factors that are both immediate and longer-term. In addition to the short-term condition of the labor market and the political strategy of the government in power, of longer-term importance are structural and institutional conditions that derive from the earlier process of market reform, specifically the nature of sectoral shifts in the economy and the degree of labor law deregulation affecting the "associational power" of unions. In February 2006, oil workers on strike blocked the access to multinational Repsol’s facilities in Las Heras, an oil enclave in Argentina’s Patagonia, for two weeks. When the police arrested a local union leader, a massive demonstration outside the town’s police station ensued. The incident culminated in a street battle with the police and the death of one official.