A Decade of Industrial Relations Research in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda

Abstract

This review paper examines the state of IR research in SSA and establishes a future research agenda—a context that has had limited coverage in global IR literature. Following the Preferred Reporting Items method for conducting Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses, we reviewed 52 IR studies published in 43 journals between 2013 and 2023 that covered 16 countries in SSA. Analysis of the studies revealed five core areas of IR research: union militancy, new form of union activism and democratisation, union fragmentation, tripartism and externally driven neoliberalism. Further analysis identified four emerging themes: colonial and historical legacies, overrepresentation of the South African context, and theoretical and methodological challenges linked to researching IR in the region. Despite regional variations between Francophone, Lusophone and Anglophone Africa, our review contends that regardless of the country-specific orientation and history, IR in SSA is entangled with colonisation, decolonisation, institutional democratisation, economic informality and precarious labour politics. These findings have significant implications for IR research and policy, particularly on the advancement of decent work and regeneration of trade unions in SSA.