Transnational Capital and Paper Production

This chapter examines the progression of the Dutch paper industry during the post-Fordist phase, starting from 1980 onward. By highlighting both active and passive government interventions and economic restructuring within the context of the Dutch paper industry, the chapter challenges the notion that the state withdraws from regulatory involvement in the post-Fordist accumulation regime. State strategies, including the deregulation of market structures to facilitate widespread transnational ownership, neoliberal re-regulative initiatives involving closer collaboration between the public and private sectors for research and development, privatization of public sectors, active and passive financial support for industry demands, and the flexibilization of labor, all aimed at enhancing the international competitiveness of Dutch industries. The chapter clarifies the tensions that arise from the convergence of conflicting class fraction interests, with a focus on industry sustainability, emerging forms of labor precarity, and heightened competition.