Outsourcing fragments, the struggle unifies: union unification as a way to confront outsourcing

Abstract  This article delves into the reflections of a case study that focuses on the relationship between: (i) a strike in the eucalyptus cultivation sector in the state of Bahia; (ii) a partial process of reversing outsourcing (primarization) in the same sector. The article starts with a theoretical discussion of the role of outsourcing in the current strategy of capital domination over labor. It then looks at the relationship between outsourcing and trade unionism, addressing its implications for workers' organization and resistance. It then briefly recounts the strike and the fight against primarization. To do this, it is based on field research (interviews with ten trade unionists) and documents. The analysis leads to the conclusion that a central feature of the labor union was essential to the relative success of the strike in confronting outsourcing: the joint organization of outsourced and nuclear workers.

Keywords:  Trade unionism; Workers; Strikes; Outsourcing; Primarization