Can sectionalism be good for solidarity? Some evidence from the maritime construction industry on Tyneside

McBride, Jo

doi:10.1177/0143831x10377807

Can sectionalism be good for solidarity? Some evidence from the maritime construction industry on Tyneside

McBride, Jo

Authors

Professor Jo Mcbride joanne.mcbride@durham.ac.uk
Professor

Abstract

Sectionalism has historically been viewed as negative in that it isolates workers from a shared sense of a collective identity thereby weakening solidarity. This paper considers the alternative argument that sectionalism can be good for solidarity. It does this by measuring the collective identity of the workforce in the Tyneside Maritime Construction Industry (TMCI) using mobilization theory as a tool for measurement. It discovers that the collective identity does not necessarily develop in one setting but can develop in different stages and at different levels. It also finds that workers may have an association with different collective identities and therefore, the collective identity may take different forms. The collective identity can also divide as well as unite, which implies ‘solidarity within sectionalism’, and in turn it is argued that this brings positivity to the TMCI workforce’s shared collective identity.

Citation

McBride, J. (2011). Can sectionalism be good for solidarity? Some evidence from the maritime construction industry on Tyneside. Economic and Industrial Democracy, 32(2), 285-306. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143831x10377807

Journal Article Type	Article
Online Publication Date	Jan 6, 2011
Publication Date	May 1, 2011
Deposit Date	Jun 19, 2018
Publicly Available Date	Jul 10, 2018
Journal	Economic and Industrial Democracy
Print ISSN	0143-831X
Electronic ISSN	1461-7099
Publisher	SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	32
Issue	2
Pages	285-306
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1177/0143831x10377807
Public URL	https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1323892

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Copyright Statement
McBride, Jo (2011). Can sectionalism be good for solidarity? Some evidence from the maritime construction industry on Tyneside. Economic and Industrial Democracy 32(2): 285-306. Copyright © 2010 The Author(s). Reprinted by permission of SAGE Publications.