Uniendo lo que el Capital Divide: Labor-community unite in an unequal Northern Greater Buenos Aires

Abstract

The combination of labor revitalization and persistent informality in Argentina provides an ideal setting to study the relations between formal and informal workers. This article presents evidence of a successful alliance between formal workers employed in a meatpacking plant and residents of adjacent neighborhoods in Northern Gran (Greater) Buenos Aires. The actions of solidarity between formal and informal workers are part of an inclusive class identity proposed in the workers´ discourses. After describing the solidarity actions, I study the characteristics of this case that help to explain the alliance, based on a comparison with strategies of unions in nearby factories. Preliminary evidence suggests that the existence of a grassroots democratic union is a necessary condition for inclusive union strategies and a broad working class identity. The scale of relations varies according to the geographical pattern of workers housing.