In early 2011, the nation was stunned to watch Wisconsin's state capitol in Madison come under sudden and unexpected occupation by union members and their allies. The protests to defend collective bargaining rights were militant and practically unheard of in this era of declining union power. Nearly forty years of neoliberalism and the most severe economic crisis since the Great Depression have battered the labor movement, and workers have been largely complacent in the face of stagnant wages, slashed benefits and services, widening unemployment, and growing inequality. That is, until now.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1983.

Examines the early history of America's labor movement in the nineteenth century, particularly the fight for an eight-hour work day, and its effects on American business and workers.

A clear analysis of tactics and politics, this thorough account examines the dispute between the United Healthcare Workers (UHW) union in California and its 'parent' organization the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) - one of the most important labor conflicts in the United States today. It explores how the UHW rank and file took umbrage with the SEIUs rejection of traditional labor values of union democracy and class struggle and their tactics of wheeling and dealing with top management and politicians. The resulting rift and retaliation from SEIU leadership culminated in the UHW membership being forced to break out and form a brand new union, the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW). Timed to coincide with elections in California, this detailed history calls for a reexamination of the ideological and structural underpinnings of todays labor movement and illustrates how a seemingly local conflict speaks to the rights of laborers everywhere to control their own fates.