Disarticulations in Naples: Regional Disinvestments, Resistance, and the Green Transition at a Whirlpool Factory

This paper develops a cultural political ecological approach to disarticulations and labour unrest. It suggests that the (post-)pandemic landscape is characterised by opening cultural and political-ecological spaces for worker agency that connect geographies beyond the north/south divide. The reference point for analysis is a struggle at a Whirlpool factory in Naples that the company announced would close in 2019, six months after signing an agreement with the Italian government, including a multi-million investment plan. Despite experiencing continuous growth, Whirlpool, Italy's biggest manufacturer of home appliances, has engaged in disinvestment strategies in recent years aimed at reorganising production activities on a global scale. The article documents workers’ attempts to resist the plant's closure and shows how their fight with the American multinational corporation was engrained within demands over the green transition that contributed to the outcome of the dispute. Assessing implications for environmental labour studies, the article reflects on the broader dynamics of intra-worker competition and collective action on a transnational scale.