![]() ![]() This shift has created space for unusual and unexpected alliances, as well as surprising policy outcomes. ![]() From the IMF to the OECD to the Financial Times, we now see former cheerleaders of neoliberalism calling to raise working-class income. Inequality is bad for economic growth, and it is bad for political stability. Whether we talk about structural adjustment, austerity, or “flexibilization,” the evidence is clear: these policies have led to massive unsustainable inequality. A growing number of employers, elites, and policymakers acknowledge the flaws of neoliberalism. In fact, as Munck points out, there are some positive developments. ![]() And so we have no choice but to fight to direct labor organizations and movements towards an internationalist social and economic justice direction. Workers still have the power to strike, resist, and vote as a block. As Ronaldo Munck and others point out, labor organizations still have large numbers of members and resources. Employer organizations strategize about how to relate to worker organizations. But what choice do those of us who work in or with labor organizations have but to keep fighting despite the pessimism? Politicians still take the labor movement seriously enough to court it and attack it. We can debate the data and voting patterns, but the fact remains: Trump, Bolsonaro, Modi, and Duterte would not be in office if large numbers of working-class people, including union members, hadn’t voted for them. Bill Fletcher and Peter Evans rightly raise alarms about the growing nationalist and right-wing populist movements that pose a serious challenge for labor internationalism. It is refreshing to hear voices of optimism in these difficult times, and I am grateful for Ronaldo Munck’s essay. An exchange on the essay Workers of the World Unite (At Last) ![]()
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