Negotiating Organizational Identity in Polarized Times Migration, Representation, and the Future of Civil Society Organizations

What the paper says

This study examines the contested negotiation of organizational identity within the German trade union ver.di (“Vereinte Dienstleistungsgewerkschaft”), focusing on internal debates around migration, representation, and belonging. Through empirical analysis, the paper shows how divergent interpretations of the union's identity-texts—particularly its pro-migration stance—generate tensions between symbolic commitments and organizational practices. While some members frame migration-related diversity as central to the union's organizational identity and call for formal representation mechanisms (e.g., a migration quota), others perceive such measures as threats to their own organizational belonging, expressing affective resistance rooted in anxiety and categorical skepticism. The study highlights how these conflicts reflect broader micro-political struggles, in which power asymmetries and emotional investments shape competing visions of the union's future. By situating these dynamics within Germany's polarized political climate, the paper argues that civil society organizations face a critical challenge: reconciling their democratic function of representing marginalized voices with internal heterogeneity and resistance to structural change. The findings underscore organizational identity as an ongoing process of negotiation, requiring deliberate identity work to address incongruences between rhetoric and practice. This research contributes to debates on diversity governance, the affective dimensions of organizations, and the role of civil society in advancing inclusive democracy amid rising right-wing ideologies. In doing so, the study addresses a gap in the existing literature by shedding light on internal representational struggles and their implications for organizational identity.