San Antonio Dockworkers Facing Technological Change: Strategies and Tensions in the Context of Chilean Neoliberalism

Abstract

Maritime transport is an international business in which ports occupy a strategic position. Its evolution poses various challenges for dockworkers, who must safeguard their occupations and workplaces. From a union revitalization perspective, this article analyzes the development of strategies deployed by organized dockworkers to confront technological change in a highly hostile labor context, as exemplified by the Chilean case. Using a case study approach, a total of 18 interviews were conducted in 2021. The evidence indicates that both the deregulated port labor contracting market and the absence of sectoral bargaining are key explanatory factors that significantly weaken the strategic position of these workers when facing such challenges.