June 7, 2022

Labour Relations, Social Inequalities and Trade Unionism

Hermes Augusto Costa

This paper analyzes the concept of social movement unionism (SMU) aiming to establish a closer relation of its model with the way in which women in the Central Única dos Trabalhadores (CUT) operate. It is a relatively new concept in the Brazilian literature, but it is frequently evoked by foreign authors as a way out of the crisis of existing union models. Through literature review, document analysis, field research, application of questionnaires and interviews, I seek to verify the hypothesis that CUT union members have developed SMU-specific skills to make themselves present and active in the union environment, historically hostile to women's participation. The research revealed that the partnership with the feminist movement was important to politicize gender relations in life, at work and in the union movement and, with this, it expanded the Central's agenda and raised the need to transform social relations guided by the patriarchy.

Keywords: unionism; CUT; social movement; Social Movement Unionism; women unionists; feminism.