Labor law reform in South Africa unintentionally precipitated the rapid growth of a powerful black trade union movement and institutionalized collective bargaining in the 1980s. Despite the political crisis, the Independent Mediation Service of South Africa helped to disseminate the culture and practice of negotiated order, developed in industrial relations, to the broader society and national politics. As a result of the negotiated transition, the new democratic order is characterized by inclusive, consensus‐building policy‐making processes.

Adler
,
G.
 and
E.
Webster
1995
.
Challenging transition theory: The labor movement, radical reform, and transition to democracy in South Africa
.
Politics and Society
23
(
1
):
75
–
106
.
Google Scholar
Crossref
Search ADS
 
Benjamin
,
P.
1989
.
Re‐establishing managerial power? Changing patterns in labour law
. In
South African Review 5
, edited by
G.
Moss
 and
I.
Obery
. Johannesburg :
Ravan Press
.
Google Scholar
 
Fine
,
R.
1992
.
Civil society theory and the politics of transition in South Africa
.
Review of African Political Economy
55
:
71
–
83
.
Google Scholar
 
Fine
,
A.
 and
E.
Webster
1989
.
Transcending traditions: Trade unions and political unity
.
South African Review 5
, edited by
G.
Moss
 and
I.
Obery
. Johannesburg :
Ravan Press
.
Google Scholar
 
Finnemore
,
M.
 and
R.
Van der Merwe
1992
.
Introduction to industrial relations in South Africa
, 3rd Ed. Johannesburg :
Lexicon
.
Google Scholar
 
Haysom
,
N.
1984
.
The Industrial Court: Institutionalizing industrial conflict
.
South African Review II
. Johannesburg :
Ravan Press
.
Google Scholar
 
IMSSA
.
1994
.
On the frontline: Ten years of the Independent Mediation Service of South Africa 1984–1994
. IMSSA Review No. 16.
Innes
,
D.
1992
.
Labour relations in the De Klerk era
.
South African Review 6
, edited by
G.
Moss
 and
I.
Obery
. Johannesburg :
Raven Press
.
Google Scholar
 
King
,
S.
1995
.
Alternative dispute resolution in South Africa
.
Access to Justice Conference
, Ministry of Justice, November
17
–
19
.
Google Scholar
 
Lambert
,
R.
 and
E.
Webster
1988
.
The re‐emergence of political unionism in contemporary South Africa
? In
Popular struggles in South Africa
, edited by
W.
Cobbett
 and
R.
Cohen
. London :
James Currey
.
Google Scholar
 
Maree
,
J.
1985
.
The emergence, struggles and achievements of black trade unions in South Africa from 1973 to 1984
.
Labour, Capital and Society
18
(
2
):
278
–
303
.
Google Scholar
 
Mboweni
,
T.
1995
.
Industrial relations, economic development and democracy in the 21st century
.
Address presented at the International Industrial Relations Association 10th World Congress, Washington, D.C., June 1995
.
Google Scholar
 
Moll
,
P.
1993
.
Black South African unions. Relative wage effects in international perspective
.
Industrial and Labor Relations Review
46
(
2
):
245
–
261
.
Google Scholar
Crossref
Search ADS
 
Nupen
,
C.
1995
.
Untitled address presented to at the International Industrial Relations Association 10th World Congress, Washington, D.C., June 1995
.
Google Scholar
 
ROAPE
.
1986
.
Congress of South African Trade Unions
.
Review of African Political Economy
35
(May):
68
–
83
.
Patel
,
E.
 (ed.).
1993
.
Engine of development? South Africa's National Economic Forum
. Cape Town :
Jutas
.
Google Scholar
 
Sisk
,
T.
1995
.
Democratization in South Africa: The elusive social contract
. Princeton :
Princeton University Press
.
Google Scholar
 
Tilly
,
C.
1978
.
From mobilization to revolution
. Reading , Mass. :
Addison‐Wesley
.
Google Scholar
 
This content is only available as a PDF.
© 1996 Plenum Publishing Corporation. Published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) license.
1996
Plenum Publishing Corporation
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the use is non-commercial and the original work is properly cited. For a full description of the license, please visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0.