Emotional Contagion and Labor Mobilization in an Autocracy

Labor unrest has become a salient feature of contentious politics around the globe. Yet, scholars disagree over the determinants of labor’s rise against the ruling elite in non-democracies. This article argues that emotional contagion explains a short-term spike in labor mobilization. Drawing on empirical evidence from Belarus, one of the most repressive political regimes in contemporary Europe, the study provides support for the argument. Utilizing original data from in-depth interviews with labor activists and industrial workers, empirical analysis demonstrates that a shared sense of outrage over the scale of police violence, along with the magnitude of electoral malpractices and the government’s neglect of citizens’ needs during a public health crisis, was a major catalyst for labor mobilization in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election.