Labour unions under neoliberal authoritarianism in the Global South: the cases of Turkey and Egypt

Abstract

This article analyses the trajectories of organised labour in times of neoliberalism in Turkey and Egypt and their current condition under securitised neoliberal-developmentalist regimes post-2013. Neoliberal experience in these countries was marked by continuing authoritarianism, challenging the view that economic liberalisation would lead to political democratisation. One of the most important areas of neoliberal restructuring has been labour markets. In order to achieve this, struggles over organised labour were of vital importance. Dismantling the power of dissident labour unions through coercive measures and containing other sections of organised labour through authoritarian corporatist relations has been crucial in these cases.