workerism

Workerism, or operaismo in Italian, is a left-wing Marxist current that centers the working class as the principal agent of historical change and emphasizes the autonomy of workers from traditional political parties and state institutions. Developed mainly in Italy during the 1960s and 1970s, it was associated with thinkers such as Mario Tronti and Antonio Negri. The movement argued that capital accumulates power through the organization of labor and that workers’ direct action within the workplace reveals the true dynamics of capitalism, often surpassing the representational claims of unions or parliamentary politics.

Core ideas include the primacy of the labor process, the factory as the historic site of class struggle, and later the expansion of these concepts into the notion of the social factory, which posits that production and social life are intertwined through labor power. The tradition also fed into autonomist currents that stress self-organization, direct action, and the potential for workers to act as a political subject beyond traditional state or party channels. It influenced debates on globalization, precarious work, and the social dimensions of modern capitalism.

Legacy and reception: Workerist thought influenced a range of later movements and scholars, including Paolo Virno and other proponents of autonomism, and it sparked ongoing discussions about the role of labor in political change.

Critics argue that the emphasis on the worker as a singular subject can overlook other social groups and structural factors, and that some formulations underestimate the role of political organization and institutions in guiding social change.