The social bases of the new Brazilian trade unions

Abstract

The book is a reference for those who study trade unionism as it brings unprecedented empirical data on the social bases of Brazilian trade union federations formed after the law recognizing trade unions enacted by the Lula government in 2008: the UGT (União Geral dos Trabalhadores), the CTB (Central Workers of Brazil), Intersindical and CSP-Conlutas. The data were obtained by the authors through extensive quantitative research that applied more than 3 thousand questionnaires to delegates from six national union congresses. The book raises many possibilities for analysis given the richness of empirical research and the way it is structured. Discusses the reconfiguration of Brazilian trade unionism, the reorganization of the trade union left and compares the socioeconomic and political profile of the social bases of the different centers analyzed, highlighting similarities, but also striking differences, and suggesting hypotheses about the relationship between this profile and the political orientation of each center .