Research

Research and documentation of worker’s conditions is one of the core contributions of AMRC to trade unions and workers in the labour movement. It requires teamwork between grassroots research conducted by labour activists and others who closely support workers. AMRC’s role is to listen to local partners, and enlist other individuals and organziations to assist workers in reaching their goals.

AMRC has been a major resource to the labour movement in Asia and our research has provided credible analysis of the situation that has been helpful for the labour groups in the region to devise strategies. Some of the important research include: comparative analysis of the labour laws in the region; analysis of the corporate codes of conducts and strategies of engagement, investment patterns of the ATNCs and labour conditions in automobile, garment and electronics sector; export of hazard to Asia with specific case study related to asbestos, comparative analysis of workers compensation systems in Asia; laid off workers in SOEs in China, WTO and its effect on Chinese workers; strategies to link the consumer movement in west with the grassroots movement in Asia (Triangle Solidarity).

Whenever possible, research projects have been designed to dovetail with education and training programmes. Our key research projects are described below:

Informal labour is one of the major concerns for the labour movement in Asia. In developing countries, the lack of institutional labour protection, the immaturity of industrialisation, and the integration of the population into capitalist social relations produces a particular form: an increasing informal economy where workers are truly treated as a factor of production without any institutional protection either from unions or from the state. For workers in developed countries, the growing informality mostly (not exclusively though) means dissolving formal employment. Increasing numbers of workers, previously in standard forms of employment, become disposable as part of the irregular workforce, due to either short-term contracts or uncertain legal relations of employment. In this broad project, this programme aims to look deeper into the process of informalisation in Asia, which has not been properly understood. At the same time it also looks into various initiatives in organising of the informal labour. This programme will also look into specific sectors of construction, garment and domestic work in detail particularly in China and other East and South East Asian countries to see the precarious nature of these employments and look into the present organising initiatives and possible intervention to support and build such initiatives. Women form a formidable population of the informal sector and more and more women are driven into precarious employment. This programme also aims to look into the specific issues women face and how women’s leadership is developing. Our capacity building initiatives will also target strengthening such initiatives.

Capital is now moving into other spaces, times, and aspects of our social life. It turns all things concerning human life into commodities and the whole of society into a commodity producing and consuming sphere, rendering all of society “permeated through and through with the regime of the factory”. Capital has attained unprecedented mobility due to lack of any kind of effective restriction and it keeps on mocking nation states by moving freely at its will. This run-away capital has been one of the major concerns for the working population in Asia. This project will further develop on the model of ‘Triangle Solidarity” which intends to strengthen the relations between campaign and movement building by developing triangular solidarity between labour organisations in the home countries of manufacturing capital, those in buyers’ countries and the workers in manufacturing countries. It would also analyse existing methods to campaign against run-away capital, used by organisations in different countries. We will also look into the new labour activism in the foreign invested enterprises in China. Capital investment of immense proportions has also resulted in movement of a huge migrant population working in these enterprises. These workers are facing many problems, due to lack of freedom of association in China. This project aims to strengthen capacities of Chinese labour organisations so that they can effectively claim their rights.

Asia has one of the highest work related fatalities in the world. Millions of workers are working in hazardous industries like mining, electronics etc with minimal labour rights. This programme is aimed to address the serious occupational safety and health (OSH) concerns due to absence of OSH rights in some of the hazardous industries. Women employed in these hazardous industries face specific problems, that have not been studied properly. The programme also aims to study the impact, both medical and sociological, on women. It will focus on Mining, Asbestos and Electronics. The programme has a two-fold approach; at one level, we focus on elimination or reduction of the hazard at the workplace and on the other hand, we focus on the problems that occupational accident and disease victims face and the means to address those problems. Our activities include research, training, campaigns and publications and our target group includes trade unions, labour NGOs and other workers or victims’ groups. We believe that effective participation of workers at all levels in any OSH programme is the key to its success.