What one can say is that over time in any given geographical/sectoral
locality, the workforce will seek to create some form of syndical organization
and action that will enable them to bargain more effectively either
directly with the employer or indirectly via their influence on the relevant
political machinery. While no doubt such political strength can be set back
in given localities through the political counteroffensives of capitalist
groups, it is also true that the long-run ‘democratization’ of the political
machineries throughout the history of the modern world system has
served to make the curve of the political strength of the working classes
an upward one over the longue durée in virtually all states in the world
system.