THE EXTENSION OF THE CRISIS IN BRAZILIAN UNIONISM

The article inquires on the alleged crisis of the Brazilian trade unionism in the last decade. Analyzes some central dimensions of the union dynamics in the country (number of trade unions, membership in central federations, union density, volume of strikes, collective bargaining and others), and shows that in spite of the sharp drop in union density, union actions have proven effective in collective bargaining. The picture of crisis is linked to the overall political environment in which the political project of the movement’s hegemonic portion (the CUT and allies) and its parties (the PT and its allies) are today under fire from the forces that oppose them.

Trade unionism; Economic crisis; Political crisis; Collective bargaining; Strikes