Organizing the Self-Employed: Theoretical Considerations and Empirical Findings

Abstract

Trade unions across Europe have pursued various strategies in their attempt to revitalize. Austria’s largest trade union has chosen to broaden its membership base by organizing and representing new membership groups such as dependent self-employed workers. We argue that this new category of workers poses a distinct challenge to a union’s identity, since their heterogeneous and highly individualized working conditions contribute to very individualistic personality traits. This article draws a picture of identity conceptions, normative orientations and prospective behaviour of dependent self-employed workers towards unions and suggests union strategies to deal with them.