Agricultural workers and trade unions in the neoliberal food regime: capital–labour relations, conflicts over labour and the agroindustrial transformation of the sugarcane sector in São Paulo

ABSTRACT In the academic and political debate about land grabbing and agroindustrial transformations in the neoliberal food regime effects on labour are neglected. In response to this gap, this paper focuses on labour, unions, their bargaining power and struggles in these transformation processes. Empirically, I analyse the effects of the transformation of the sugarcane sector in the state of São Paulo between 2002 and 2016 by applying the power resource approach. The analysis shows that these processes had mainly negative effects on the rural working class such as increased unemployment, a loss of associational power or less collective struggles; new power resources could not compensate for this.