The response of the working class in Harare, Zimbabwe to hyper-inflation and the political crisis, 1997-2008

The dissertation traces the responses by Harare's working class to the economic and political crisis that gripped Zimbabwe in the years 1997 to 2008. It starts with 'Black Friday' in 1997, which initiated a period of rising inflation culminating in the second worst hyper-inflation in world history, and ends with dollarisation. This was a period marked by rigged elections, notably in 2000 and 2008, and by considerable political repression. Drawing mainly on interview data, the repertoire of reactions is considered at three levels: unions, work and the household. A distinction is made between three kinds of response: workerism, partyism and survivalism. Combined with economic and political data this leads to a periodisation. First, from 1997-2000 there was a shift in the dominant response from workerism to partyism. Secondly, following failure by the unions and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to respond effectively to the stolen election of 2000, and with a rapidly declining economy and bouts of state terror, there was a move towards survivalism. Thirdly, this became more pronounced during years of hyper-inflation, 2006-08. But, fourthly, survivalism failed to provide the solution to people's problems, and there was a return to partyism, with this feeding into the MDC's success in 2008 and, thus, to dollarisation. Finally, there are signs of a limited return to workerism in the period since 2008. Whilst there was significant numerical and organisational disintegration in the working class from 2000 onwards, this remained partial, with the unions contributing to the MDCs electoral gains in 2008. Accounts of the period that privilege survival strategies not only obscure other responses to the crisis, they also occlude an appreciation of the role of repression in atomising workers, thus reducing their options, and the significance of the failure of workerism and partyism in encouraging individualised responses. A more rounded view can also assist us in making sense of the outcome and implications of the 2008 elections, and along with it, moves that went beyond survival strategising. The dissertation considers the experiences of four groups of workers and shows how these differed greatly. Teachers stayed away from work, in large measure to save on travel costs and participate in cross-border trade; factory workers often benefited from non-salary and even non-monetary remuneration; the catering workers at times relied on small-scale deals in the informal sector; banking workers suffered less than other workers and were better placed to engage in financial scams. It is possible that this unevenness further undermined the possibility of unified action by workers. ; D.Litt. et Phil. (Sociology)