Now THAT'S a Labour Protest!

by David Doorey July 15, 2009

written by David Doorey July 15, 2009

Remember when the CAW workers responded to General Motors’ announcement it was closing its truck assembly plant by putting up a picket line in front of GM’s headquarters? GM went to court, got an injunction, and that was that. In France, workers are not so reserved. There’s been a rash of ‘boss-napping’ in recent months, in which workers have locked their managers in the offices in protest of cut-backs and layoffs. Now, French Nortel workers apparently threatened to blow up a French factory as part of their bargaining strategy to recover better severance terms.
I have a feeling that these tactics would not go over so well with the public and the police in North America. What’s interesting is that surveys have shown that large numbers of French citizens support the boss-nappings, and even many politicians have suggested the tactics are justified. Are North American workers just too docile in their efforts to win better employment terms?

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David Doorey

Professor Doorey is an Associate Professor of Work Law and Industrial Relations at York University. He is Academic Director of Osgoode Hall Law School’s executive LLM Program in Labour and Employment Law and a Senior Research Associate at Harvard Law School’s Labor and Worklife Program. Professor Doorey is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School (LL.B., Ph.D), London School of Economics (LLM Labour Law), and the University of Toronto (B.A., M.I.R.).