Fading Corporatism

Since the 1980s, industrial relations and labor law in Israel have rapidly changed from a European style of corporatism to a model of pluralism familiar to North America. The country's legal and industrial relations systems have become more decentralized, yet more intensively regulated; they are no longer centrally managed, but they do not fit the neoliberal model of a free market. In recent years, a dynamic system for voicing interests has evolved, granting more leeway to individuals, identity-based representation, and a flourishing civil society, but restraining effective collective representation.In Fading Corporatism, Guy Mundlak explains the changing nature of labor law and industrial relations in Israel and the seemingly paradoxical outcomes of transformation as played out in numerous spheres, including the law governing the recognition of trade unions and strikes; the emergence of a human rights regime; and the regulation of temporary work agencies, Palestinian workers from the occupied territories, and migrant workers. Placing the example of Israel in a conceptual framework that draws on the literature of corporatism, Mundlak offers a theoretical coupling of legal studies and industrial relations that will interest scholars and practitioners in both fields.Surveying legal developments from 1920 to the present, Fading Corporatism will also appeal to readers interested in the political, economic, and legal history of Israel. At the same time, Mundlak emphasizes the comparative implications of the Israeli case study. His account is particularly instructive for countries in which traditionally corporatist industrial and legal systems are experiencing similar pressures, such as the Netherlands, Austria, and Germany.

"Fading Corporatism is an outstanding book. It documents and makes sense of the dramatic contemporary transformation of Israel's industrial relations system through the prism of labor law. From its prior role as handmaiden to a corporatist system dominated by organized labor, the law became both cause and consequence of a dramatic transition to American-style pluralism. At one level, Guy Mundlak tells a fascinating story about the Israeli experience, complete with unexpected twists and subtle insights. Equally, however, this book is a theoretical tour de force. It offers both a sophisticated and truly multidisciplinary approach to labor law, and a convincing demonstration that the legal system should be treated as an integral component of the study of labor relations.", "Guy Mundlak's book is an outstanding scholarly accomplishment. Using an original, powerful approach to comparative studies, Mundlak charts the transformation of Israel's labor law and industrial relations systems over the twentieth century from the rise and consolidation of corporatism to contemporary pluralist, juridified, postcorporatist arrangements. The interplay between core labor relations practices and peripheral labor markets of Palestinian day workers and overseas migrants is integral to the story. Mundlak's account glides with the ease and precision of a zoom lens between the historical and social narrative, close-up views of doctrinal developments and institutional details, and wide-angle theoretical perspectives. Indeed, Mundlak's most enduring contribution may well be in the field of legal and social theory, particularly in understanding the role of law in social transformation. He pushes the methodological envelope by theorizing, sharpening, and adding nuance to an appreciation of law as both embedded within and constitutive of social orders.", "I cannot think of another book like this; I cannot even think of another author who could have written one. Guy Mundlak applies industrial relations scholarship in order to understand the genesis of legal norms in Israel, making clear the role of the emerging human-rights discourse in bringing down older conceptions of worker empowerment."

Guy Mundlak is Professor of Law and Labor Studies at Tel-Aviv University.