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This article considers whether industrial relations (IR) research is objective, impartial or value-free, and argues that many IR academics in Britain have tended to start from a social-democratic premise which makes them relatively more sympathetic to the interests and objectives of workers and their trade unions than to the business needs of employers and managers. Focusing attention on the partisanship of those who have made a distinctive 'radical/critical' contribution to IR scholarship, it advances the argument that IR can, at one and the same time, be both partisan and objective. Acknowledging the real potential dangers of bias in adopting a methodological approach that states, in the words of C. Wright Mills, 'I have tried to be objective, but I do not claim to be detached', it provides a defence of the potential merits of partisanship, provided it is underpinned by rigorous scholarly research. Keywords Bias, industrial relations, objectivity, partisanship, value-neutrality, Introduction Eric Hobsbawm (1998: 164) observed that although there has been a great deal of discussion about the nature, or even the possibility, of objectivity in the social sciences, there [...]

This paper celebrates some of the considerable strengths of Hyman's 1970s/ early 1980s analysis of unions in general and bureaucracy specifically, and reapplies it to more recent developments within British unions, while at the same time providing a critique of Hyman's refutation of the 'rank-and-file' versus 'union bureaucracy' conception of intra-union relations. It argues that the wider set of implications Hyman drew from the accentuated pressures towards the bureaucratisation of workplace unionism that he identified 'bent the stick' too far in the opposite direction. In attempting to defend and refine the classical revolutionary Marxist analytical framework, the paper maintains that the conflict of interest that exists between full-time officials and rank-and-file members is a meaningful generalisation of a real contradiction within trade unionism, notwithstanding the variations and complexities involved. It examines the nature and social dynamics of full-time union officialdom, shop stewards and workplace unionism, and the relationship between the two. In the process, the limits and potential of both Hyman's 'earlier' and 'later' writings are highlighted and some broader generalisations are drawn with relevance to current dilemmas for trade unionism. Keywords Richard Hyman, bureaucracy, rank-and-file, trade union, Introduction Against the backdrop of an upsurge in industrial militancy in Western economies in the late-1960s and early 1970s, Richard Hyman crafted an unsurpassed Marxist analysis of the political economy [...]

This article provides a brief evaluation of the state of workplace union reps' organization in Britain as we approach the second decade of the 2000s. It documents the severe weakening of workplace union organization over the last 25 years, which is reflected in the declining number of reps, reduced bargaining power and the problem of bureaucratization. But it also provides evidence of the continuing resilience, and even combativity in certain areas of employment, of workplace union reps organization, and considers the future potential for a revival of fortunes. Keywords industrial relations, workplace trade unionism, union reps, For many years, workplace union representatives have played a central and distinctive role in British industrial relations in defending workers' interests vis-a-vis employers, and providing a vital link between unions [...]

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), which represents the majority of mainline railway and London Underground workers, is currently one of the most militant and left-wing trade unions in Britain. Drawing on the study of leadership provided by mobilisation theory, this article explores the extent to which union leadership, dominated by left-wing activists at every level of the union, has been an important contributory catalyst, symptom and beneficiary of union militancy relative to other influencing factors such as the impact of privatisation, managerial belligerence, and immediate grievances over pay and conditions., Introduction Kelly's (1998) seminal exposition and refinement of mobilisation theory has been well received, in general, the field of British industrial relations since it appeared more than a decade ago. [...]

This article critically reassesses the predominant argument that the 1984-5 miners' strike was inevitably doomed, and examines the potential for alternative courses of action and a different outcome., Introduction In the early 1970s, Britain was swept by a wave of militant industrial struggle, the depth and political character of which had been unprecedented since the 1920s, both in [...]

Gregor Gall The Meaning of Militancy? Postal Workers and Industrial Relations Ashgate, Aldershot and Burlington, 2003, pp. 348 ISBN 0-7546-1902-8 (hbk) 55.00 £ Given the continuing, laborious overpreoccupation with human [...]

Providing an account of the dynamic interrelationship between shop steward leadership and membership interaction, Ralph Darlington focuses particular attention on the much-neglected crucial role that lef-twing political activists can play in shaping the nature of collective workplace relations.

This introduction provides a rationale for the special issue on the contribution of Richard Hyman to the study of industrial relations. Keywords Richard Hyman, Marxism, workers, unions, industrial relations, This special issue on the contribution of Richard Hyman to the study of the employment relationship within capitalist society represents both a celebration and critical reassessment of his work, which [...]