Strange union: changing patterns of reform, representation, and unionization in policing

Unions and policing are a relatively under‐researched area. But this paper, adopting a comparative approach, argues that police unions have been and still are influential, that they differ across cultures, and are involved in a variety of ways in police reform. They can be supportive of change, hostile to it, or closely involved in the reform process. Some are representative bodies where the police may not unionize while there are increasingly special interest groups based on faith, gender, and ethnicity. This paper focuses on representation and voice for ordinary officers in relation to reform in policing.