Service, Solidarity, and Self-Help: A Comparative Topic Modeling Analysis of Community Unionism in the Boot and Shoe Union and Unite Community

Abstract

This paper presents a comparative analysis of community unionism (CU) in two distinct historical and organizational contexts: the National Boot and Shoe Union (B\&S) in the 1920s and Unite Community in the 2010s--2020s. Using BERTopic for thematic modeling and cTF-IDF weighting, alongside word frequency analysis, the study examines the extent to which each union's discourse aligns with key features of CU -- such as coalition-building, grassroots engagement, and action beyond the workplace. The results reveal significant differences in thematic focus and discursive coherence. While Unite Community demonstrates stronger alignment with outward-facing, social justice-oriented themes, the B\&S corpus emphasizes internal administration, industrial relations, and member services -- reflecting a more traditional, servicing-oriented union model. The analysis also highlights methodological insights, demonstrating how modern NLP techniques can enhance the study of historical labor archives. Ultimately, the findings suggest that while both unions engage with community-related themes, their underlying models of engagement diverge significantly, challenging assumptions about the continuity and universality of community unionism across time and sector.