Adam Doster reviews two new books about the state of the labor movement.
In their well-regarded 1998 book, Organizing to Win: New Research on Union Strategies, labor experts Kate Bronfenbrenner and Tom Juravich found that labor unions' strategies matter more than employers' tactics when it comes to determining the success of organizing campaigns. Even workers with their backs against the wall can overcome the financial advantages of their bosses, the authors argue, if they are smart and persistent. Two new books, State of the Unions by Philip M. Dine and U.S. Labor in Trouble and Transition by Kim Moody, embrace this premise with gusto. In dissimilar but equally thoughtful works, Dine and Moody propose internal changes that the struggling labor movement can make to regain its influence. While each has its shortfalls, labor leaders serious about sustainable union growth would be wise to engage with these pressing volumes.
Read the rest (and comment) here. --The Editors
