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Monaco, Lorenza (2015) Bringing Operaismo to Gurgaon : a Study of Labour Composition and Resistance Practices in the Indian Auto Industry

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Monaco, Lorenza (2015) Bringing Operaismo to Gurgaon : a Study of Labour Composition and Resistance Practices in the Indian Auto Industry Monaco, Lorenza (2015) Bringing Operaismo to Gurgaon : a study of labour composition and resistance practices in the Indian auto industry. PhD Thesis. SOAS, University of London http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/23688 Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non‐commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. When referring to this thesis, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given e.g. AUTHOR (year of submission) "Full thesis title", name of the School or Department, PhD Thesis, pagination. Bringing Operaismo to Gurgaon: a study of labour composition and resistance practices in the Indian Auto Industry Lorenza Monaco Thesis submitted for the PhD degree in Development Studies 2015 Department of Development Studies SOAS, University of London I have read and understood regulation 17.9 of the Regulations for students of SOAS, University of London concerning plagiarism. I undertake that all the material presented for examination is my own work and has not been written for me, in whole or in part, by any other person. I also undertake that any quotation or paraphrase from the published or unpublished work of another person has been duly acknowledged in the work which I present for examination. Signed: ______________________ Date: _________________ 1 Abstract Inspired by the Italian tradition of Operaismo (Workerism), or Autonomist Marxism, this thesis provides an analysis of labour composition and of the struggles that have recently affected the Auto cluster of the National Capital Region (NCR), the metropolitan conglomerate of Delhi, in India. The analysis builds on Operaismo not only by deploying its key methodological tool, namely the workers' enquiry, but also by adopting its main interpretative paradigm of exploring industrial conflict through the 'lens' of the working class. In line with a Workerist perspective, the investigation of labour struggles in the NCR, and of the Maruti case in particular, becomes an opportunity to reflect on working class formation and agency within capitalist development, and on the relationship between working class and institutions, through the concept of autonomia. Within what Tronti defined as a Copernican Revolution, the working class determines the trajectory followed by the process of capitalist development, seen as a ‘reactive formation’ where capital strategies are nothing but a response to labour struggles. With reference to the global Auto sector, capital strategies are unveiled by debunking myths associated with the lean manufacturing paradigm. For such purpose, a critical social relations approach is deployed to complement the analysis of the real politics of production that lie behind the global restructuring of manufacturing and labour regimes within the Indian Auto industry. Through a combination of these two theoretical approaches, the thesis illustrates the overall features of the NCR workforce, in order to explain motivations and dynamics of struggle in the area. Indeed, the case discussed here is an example of ‘where lean may fail’, and of how capital strategies cannot prevent labour from organising, even in settings characterised by high levels of casualisation. In this light, what discussed in here may prove of theoretical and political relevance also beyond the Indian case. 2 Acknowledgements A PhD is a long and intense journey, that requires inspirations, motivations, support, understanding, and ‘enlightening’ moments. Throughout it, the researcher collects many valuable pieces, building a difficult but unforgettable phase of his/her own life and professional path. Regardless of its outcome, and its following applications, a Phd is an opportunity for personal growth and for a deep investigation of the self. It can be made of hard times, but also of extremely illuminating and empowering moments. Here, while approaching its very end, I wish to look back, and thank those who have contributed to make mine unique. Thinking of its very inception, of how all this started, I wish to thank Prof. Pietro Masina and Dr Michela Cerimele from the University of Naples ‘L’Orientale’, for having provided the original inspiration that later developed into this project. Pietro for having informed my first approach to Heterodox Political Economy, for firstly addressing me towards the study of Neoliberalism that ultimately brought me back to SOAS; Michela for having strongly influenced my Labour perspective, and my discovery of Workerism. Michela, and the CRS group working on FIAT, that determined my decision to undertake an exploration of the Auto industry, back in 2008. And Michela for also allowing me to personally talk to Mario Tronti, during one of the most inspiring meetings of my life as a researcher so far. To him, and to his seminal thought, I am hugely indebted, for not only having crucially informed my theoretical perspective and my main interpretative keys, but also for fundamentally enlightening me upon my methodological choices. 3 From the instant I decided to embark upon the present project, either facing hardship, discouragement or enthusiasm, up to its rewarding completion, nothing would have been possible without the support of my family, and of my father Paolo, in particular. His unconditional and endless support on all fronts, his way to listen and advice at any time, while I was in London, in the field, or during the stressful writing-up, was priceless. He has been my inestimable reference, my encouraging supporter, the shelter from my deepest concerns. Throughout the whole process, what gave substantial meaning to my entire PhD experience was the presence of my supervisor, Dr Alessandra Mezzadri. Her incredible efficiency and dedication in structuring and suggesting a direction to my own work, her brilliant insights, her tireless attention, her severe but always extremely sharp comments, have no comparison. Meeting Alessandra’s expectations was always a big challenge and an extraordinary motivation, receiving positive feedback and eventually seeing her proud of my work was probably the most rewarding part of my PhD. As part of my academic environment, I am greatly indebted to the SOAS Department of Development Studies, and to our Labour Research Cluster, for the valuable inputs received and the intellectual challenges they always provided. In particular, I am grateful to Dr Jens Lerche and Dr Dae-oup Chang for their constructive, insightful comments on my research project since its early stages; to Dr Subir Sinha, for his inspiring suggestions linked to my interest in trade union movements and Italian Autonomist Marxism. Finally, and importantly, I wish to thank Prof. Alfredo Saad- Filho, for having fuelled my interest in Marxist Political Economy, for his constant, intellectual and moral support, for his prompt advice, his warm encouragement, his precious suggestions about my research and academic path. My PhD would not have been the same if conducted elsewhere. 4 Beyond its academic framework, what shaped the core of the present research was the period spent in the field, in India. There, while setting the most interesting building blocks of this work, I had the fortune to meet extremely inspiring and helpful people. I would like to thank Prof. Praveen Jha, from Jawaharlal Nehru University (Delhi), for his initial inputs on Indian labour and unions; my friend and colleague Dr Smitha Francis, for her precious assistance; Amit Chakraborty and the Gurgaon Workers’ News activists, for the most helpful, accurate, and interesting reports from Delhi industrial areas; Com. Satbir Singh from CITU and all the workers and unionists I could meet in Gurgaon/ Manesar for providing the most enlightening and motivating political inspirations. Indeed, the political inspirations I discovered throughout the development of this work helped me constantly renew the motivation and the enthusiasm needed for its completion. Undoubtedly, the campaign experience I shared with my SOAS Fractionals colleagues and comrades represented an inestimable source of strength, courage, political motivation. Our passionate intellectual and political confrontation over labour and union relations, on casualisation issues and political organising, incredibly enriched my own research perspective. Here, I would like to especially thank my friends and comrades Sai Englert, Alexis Wearmouth, Toufic Haddad, James Eastwood, Sanaa Alimia, Sophie van Huellen for being an inspiring example of individual strength, political motivation, and dedication to a collective cause. Together with Sanaa and Sophie, I am also thankful to Sara Stevano, Victoria Stadheim, Regina Enjuto-Martinez, Fiorella Picchioni, and the incredibly strong women from the campaign, for playing an inspirational and decisive role in our political discussions and in our understanding of collective action. 5 To conclude the intense journey this Phd was, its rewarding, empowering, conclusion would not have been possible without the extremely helpful and constructive feedback received by my examiners, Dr Satoshi Miyamura from SOAS and Prof. Paul Stewart from the University of Strathclyde. I feel indebted
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