The labor movement is weak and divided. Some think that it is dying. But Julius Getman, a preeminent labor scholar, demonstrates through examination of recent developments that a resurgent labor movement is possible. He proposes new models for organizing and innovating techniques to strengthen the strike weapon. Above all, he insists that unions must return to their historical roots as a social movement.

Restoring the Power of Unions: It Takes a Movement

Business & Money

Getman, Julius G.

Economics

Yale University Press

International Paper, the richest paper company and largest landowner in the United States, enjoyed record profits and gave large bonuses to executives in 1987, that same year the company demanded that employees take a substantial paycut, sacrifice hundreds of jobs, and forego their Christmas holiday. At the Adroscoggin Mill in Jay, Maine, twelve hundred workers responded by going on strike from June 1987 to October 1988. Local union members mobilized an army of volunteers but International Paper brought in permanent replacement workers and the strike was ultimately lost. Julius G. Getman tells the story of that strike and its implications―a story of a community changing under pressure; of surprising leaders, strategists, and orators emerging; of lifelong friendships destroyed and new bonds forged. 
At a time when the role of organized labor is in transition, Getman suggests, this strike has particular significance. He documents the early negotiations, the battle for public opinion, the heroic efforts to maintain solidarity, and the local union's sense of betrayal by its national leadership. With exceptional richness in perspective, Getman includes the memories and informed speculations of union stalwarts, managers, and workers, including those who crossed the picket line, and shows the damage years later to the individuals, the community, and the mill. He demonstrates the law's bias, the company's undervaluing of employees, and the international union's excessive concern with internal politics.

The Betrayal of Local 14: Paperworkers, Politics, and Permanent Replacements (Ilr Press Books)

Cornell University Press

Labor Relations: Law, Practice, and Policy

Foundation Pr

Book by Getman, Julius G., Pogrebin, Bertrand B.

Labor Relations: The Basic Processes, Law and Practice (University Textbook Series)

Pogrebin, Bertrand B.

Specialties

Labor unions and courts have rarely been allies. From their earliest efforts to organize, unions have been confronted with hostile judges and antiunion doctrines. In this book, Julius G. Getman argues that while the role of the Supreme Court has become more central in shaping labor law, its opinions betray a profound ignorance of labor relations along with a persisting bias against unions. In The Supreme Court on Unions, Getman critically examines the decisions of the nation’s highest court in those areas that are crucial to unions and the workers they represent: organizing, bargaining, strikes, and dispute resolution. 
As he discusses Supreme Court decisions dealing with unions and labor in a variety of different areas, Getman offers an interesting historical perspective to illuminate the ways in which the Court has been an influence in the failures of the labor movement. During more than sixty years that have seen the Supreme Court take a dominant role, both unions and the institution of collective bargaining have been substantially weakened. While it is difficult to measure the extent of the Court’s responsibility for the current weak state of organized labor and many other factors have, of course, contributed, it seems clear to Getman that the Supreme Court has played an important role in transforming the law and defeating policies that support the labor movement.

The Supreme Court on Unions: Why Labor Law Is Failing American Workers

ILR PRESS

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Books by Getman, Julius G.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Getman, Julius G.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Restoring the Power of Unions: It Takes a Movement

Restoring the Power of Unions: It Takes a Movement

The Betrayal of Local 14: Paperworkers, Politics, and Permanent Replacements (Ilr Press Books)

Labor Relations: Law, Practice, and Policy

Labor Relations: The Basic Processes, Law and Practice (University Textbook Series)

The Supreme Court on Unions: Why Labor Law Is Failing American Workers