Campling_et_al-2019-British_Journal_of_Industrial_Relations.pdf (724.71 kB)
South Korea's automotive labour regime, Hyundai Motors’ global production network and trade-based integration with the European Union
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 20:15 authored by Liam Campling, James Harrison, Ben Richardson, Adrian Smith, Mirela BarbuMirela BarbuThis article explores the interrelationship between global production networks(GPNs) and free trade agreements (FTAs) in the South Korean auto industry and its employment relations. It focuses on the production network of the Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) — the third biggest automobile manufacturer in the world — and the FTA between the EU and South Korea. This was the first of the EU’s ‘new generation’ FTAs, which among other things contained provisions designed to protect and promote labour standards. The article’s argument is twofold. First, that HMG’s production network and Korea’s political economy (of which HMG is a crucial part) limited the possibilities for the FTA’s labour provisions to take effect. Second, that the commercial provisions in this same FTA simultaneously eroded HMG’s domestic market and corporate profitability, leading to adverse consequences for auto workers in the more insecure and low-paid jobs. In making this argument, the article advances a multiscalar conceptualization of the labour regime as an analytical intermediary between GPNs and FTAs. It also provides one of the first empirical studies of the EU–South Korea FTA in terms of employment relations, drawing on 105 interviews with trade unions, employer associations, automobile companies and state officials across both parties.
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- Published
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- Published version
Journal
British Journal of Industrial RelationsISSN
0007-1080Publisher
WileyExternal DOI
Volume
0Page range
1-28Department affiliated with
- Management Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2020-01-20First Open Access (FOA) Date
2020-01-20First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2020-01-17Usage metrics
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