• 베이커리
• /
• no.3 s.344
• /
• pp.50-52
• /
• 1997

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
• /
• v.24 no.1
• /
• pp.52-75
• /
• 2021

The current Korean labour movement is at an impasse that is partly sustained by the idea of "strong" transnational corporations (TNCs) versus "weak" labour, and this perception is based on the "global-local dichotomy," wherein TNCs are depicted as abstract and structured entities operating at the global scale and workers are represented as having a concrete and weak presence within the local sphere. As an alternative perspective to break this "global" capital vs. "local" labour dichotomy, I focus on labour geography, which assumes that labour is not simply a factor of production but a sentient spatial actor that (un-)intentionally produces the landscape of capitalism. Borrowing insights from the multi-scalar perspective, this paper aims to understand the actual methods in which workers utilize spatial strategies through an empirical case study of the Nestlé Korea labour union strike in 2003. Based on this case study, this paper claims that workers are both capable of employing coordinated multi-scalar practices and can be more influential to the economic geographies of TNCs. Additionally, it suggests that workers' scalar practices are actually more complicated and multi-directional as a result of their complex and dynamic interactions with political, economic and cultural forces and actors at diverse geographical scales.