The ethnic factor in state-labour relations: The case of Malaysia

Abstract

Given the ethnic dimension of much conflict, it is time to acknowledge the ethnic factor in the field of employment, and the manner in which material conflicts can be articulated in identity terms. Identifications that transcend class, for example, in emphasising the commonality of ethnic identity, can serve not only to obscure intra-group class divisions under the veil of cultural closure, but also to foreclose the potential for inter-group class identification. Indeed, studies of employee relations in Europe often make little mention of ethnic diversity, despite the ethnic diversity within various countries. Studies of Asia, on the other hand, mainly focus on the relatively culturally homogeneous societies of South Korea and Japan. In most of these studies, the state (and capital) has often been seen as overly uniform and monolithic, rather than as shifting, transient and fragmented. Furthermore, the establishment and growth of first-and subsequent-generation citizens implies that a more nuanced analysis will be required of not only labour, but of the state (and capital) as well.

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