The Perspectives of Workers on Social Media Use of Trade Unions: The Case of Bursa and Kırklareli
Hüseyin Sevgi, Aysen TokolThe rapid transformation of computer and internet technologies has affected both daily life and working life profoundly. The widespread use of mobile smart devices and the expansion of mobile networks have made access to the internet easier and faster than ever before. Regardless of demographic, political, and socio-economic differences, workers have promptly transformed into internet users. Owing to Web 2.0, the nature of digital communication has changed. New forms of interaction have emerged in this process, which has popularized social media platforms, allowing internet users to be unprecedentedly active. Users can produce their own content and interact with other people’s content on social media. In this context, how unions approach and are affected by the internet and social media technologies has been a research topic. In this study, the relationship between unions and social media was examined both conceptually and with current examples. In addition, in-depth interviews with unionized workers in Bursa and Kırklareli evaluated the workers’s perspective regarding the social media use of the unions.
Sendikaların Sosyal Medya Kullanımına İşçilerin Bakışı: Bursa ve Kırklareli Örneği
Hüseyin Sevgi, Aysen TokolBilgisayar ve internet teknolojilerinde hızla gerçekleşen dönüşüm gerek günlük yaşamı gerekse çalışma yaşamını derinden etkilemektedir. Taşınabilir akıllı cihazların yaygınlaşması ve kablosuz-mobil internet ağlarının genişlemesiyle birlikte, internete erişim daha önce hiç olmadığı kadar kolay ve hızlı gerçekleşmeye başlamıştır. Bu paralelde tüm demografik, siyasi ve sosyo-ekonomik farklılıklarından bağımsız olarak işçiler de hızla birer internet kullanıcısına dönüşmüştür. Web 2.0 ile birlikte bilgisayar ve internetteki iletişimin doğası farklılaşarak, çift yönlü etkileşimin önemli olduğu bir süreç ortaya çıkmıştır. Bu süreç, sosyal medya platformlarını popülerleştirmiş, internet kullanıcılarını daha önce hiç olmadığı kadar aktif bir duruma getirmiştir. Bireyler sosyal medya sayesinde doğrudan içerik üretebilme ve başka kişilerin ürettiği içeriklerle etkileşime girme şansı yakalamışlardır. Bu bağlamda, sendikaların internet ve sosyal medya teknolojilerine nasıl yaklaşacağı ve bu teknolojilerden nasıl etkileneceği tartışma konusu olmuştur. Bu çalışmada sendikalar ve sosyal medya arasındaki ilişki hem kavramsal olarak hem de güncel örneklerle incelenmiştir. Ayrıca Bursa ve Kırklareli’nde sendikalı işçilerle yapılan derinlemesine görüşmelerle sendikaların sosyal medya kullanımına dair işçilerin bakış açısı değerlendirilmiştir.
Social media, one of the new information and communication technologies, has become an indispensable part of our daily life. Social media platforms, used by millions of people every day, are more than just communication tools. In this respect, social media has become a new place where social relations, culture, art, and ideology are reproduced. Accordingly, the internet and social media have led to radical changes in the communication, organization, and forms of action by activists involved in social movements. These changes in social movements caused by social media have inevitably affected labor unions and workers.
First, the idea that the internet and social media affect trade union organizations negatively and create an obstacle to unions has been discussed in the literature. However, the impact of new information and communication technologies in daily life has increased rapidly. Consequently, unions cannot abstain from new communication technologies. Thus, the notion that these technologies will provide renewal to unions and that unions can benefit from new communication technologies is increasingly accepted.
A critical way for unions to benefit from new communication technologies is active user participation on social media. Active user participation, an essential feature of social media with Web 2.0, refers to a double-sided interaction. Owing to Web 2.0, internet users are not only viewers on social media. They are in an active position to produce media content directly, consume it, and interfere with existing content. This active position of internet users is called a “prosumer.” More precisely, the prosumer is a person who consumes and produces media content. The concept of the prosumer has become one of the main features of social media after Web 2.0. At present, almost all social media users have transformed into prosumers by producing and consuming social media content. The role of the prosumers is that they provide unions with a significant opportunity to interact with workers. Labor unions can reach workers faster and easier than ever before using social media. Moreover, several labor union activities can be conducted more easily on social media.
The integration of labor unions on social media has accelerated in recent years. However, many national labor unions are slower in terms of social media integration than international unions. For example, the International Trade Union Confederation and the European Trade Union Confederation actively use social media in almost all union activities. They use social media platforms particularly for international solidarity, international propaganda, and digital campaigns. Some national labor unions have also started to use social media effectively after understanding its importance. For example, labor unions in countries such as Spain, France, Australia, Germany, England, Netherlands, and Canada use social media more effectively and in more areas than before. Importantly, the use of social media by national unions did not emerge spontaneously. The fact that workers have become active in social media is one of the most important factors that propelled labor unions to use social media. For example, workers have started to carry out some activities by establishing groups on social media.
Because of Web 2.0 it is not only in their own control that unions can be active on social media. Therefore, it is essential to examine the workers’ perception of the union on social media. Put differently, the union can define itself as an active organization on social media, but it is critical how workers define the union on social media. Regular sharing on social media does not show that a union actively uses social media. The important thing is not to share too many posts, but to receive as much positive interaction from workers as possible. The success of a union on social media is directly proportional to the extent to which it responds to the workers’ expectations. Therefore, workers’ perceptions of the use of social media by the unions are critical.
In this context, the concept of social media, emergence of social media, relationship of social media with traditional mass media and its historical development, and how and for what purpose social media is used by national and international unions are examined in this study. Next, the data obtained through in-depth interviews held in Bursa and Kırklareli provinces with workers who are members of different unions and have different demographic features are evaluated. Thus, the aim is to determine how unions perceive social media usage by workers.
