The organiser's library

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the button's picture
the button
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Aug 16 2006 08:50
The organiser's library

What books, pamphlets or other resources would you recommend to folks doing a spot of organising, either at work or elsewhere?

Mine are: -

The Troublemaker's handbook. This is from the US, and written for a US context, but contains lots of advice and case studies about how to get a union off the ground, how to keep it going, and how to stop it all going to shit. Some of it won't be of much interest to anarchos (stuff about "caucusing" within your union branch, and "winning power"), but that's only a small part of it. I got mine mail order from the US for cheap. It costs a fortune on Amazon, and they don't have the most up-to-date version either.
http://troublemakershandbook.org/

IWW Organising ManualFree to download in pdf: -
http://www.lancasteriww.org/IWW_organizing_manual[1].pdf Regardless of what you think about the IWW, there's lots of good stuff here, particularly about the early days of a workplace organising drive, about mapping your workplace and building a network of contacts.

Strike action & Direct action. These are two pamphlets from the Direct Action Movement (the predecessor of SolFed). More explicitly anarcho-syndicalist than the other items on this list, but with an awareness of the pros & cons of strike action (particularly one day strikes), and some alternatives.

Labour Resarch Department guides -- Law at work and Health & Safety . Not the most rivetting reads in the world, but you really do need to know this shit.

ftony
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Aug 16 2006 09:43
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Labour Resarch Department guides -- Law at work and Health & Safety . Not the most rivetting reads in the world, but you really do need to know this shit.

i'm currently compiling a pamphlet/handbook/whatever on legal and H&S stuff for the IWW. remind me, and i can email it to whoever fancies it. (for a reasonable fee, of course wink smile )

it'll probably take a few more weeks though, i've got a dissertation to write too!

Steve
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Aug 16 2006 09:36
the button wrote:
What books, pamphlets or other resources would you recommend to folks doing a spot of organising, either at work or elsewhere?

Strike action & Direct action. These are two pamphlets from the Direct Action Movement (the predecessor of SolFed). More explicitly anarcho-syndicalist than the other items on this list, but with an awareness of the pros & cons of strike action (particularly one day strikes), and some alternatives.

Maybe we should update these and re-publish?

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the button
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Aug 16 2006 09:40

I'd be up for that. I haven't got my own copy of the Direct Action one, but if some kind comrade could lend me theirs..... wink

I think that the section in the Strike action one that deals with symbolic 1-day strikes is more relevant than ever, since that seems pretty much all that the unions are interested in nowadays.

Steve
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Aug 16 2006 09:50
Jack wrote:
Steve wrote:
Maybe we should update these and re-publish?

An updated 'Stuff your Boss' would be even better. I love that pamphlet.

That is on its way. (Along with some 'Stuff your Boss' mugs for sale at the bookfair)

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the button
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Aug 16 2006 09:51
Steve wrote:
Jack wrote:
Steve wrote:
Maybe we should update these and re-publish?

An updated 'Stuff your Boss' would be even better. I love that pamphlet.

That is on its way. (Along with some 'Stuff your Boss' mugs for sale at the bookfair)

Incorporating the new rates for national minimum wage & the changes in who's covered by the working time regs, I trust.[/trainspotter]

Steve
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Aug 16 2006 09:52
the button wrote:
Steve wrote:
Jack wrote:
Steve wrote:
Maybe we should update these and re-publish?

An updated 'Stuff your Boss' would be even better. I love that pamphlet.

That is on its way. (Along with some 'Stuff your Boss' mugs for sale at the bookfair)

Incorporating the new rates for national minimum wage & the changes in who's covered by the working time regs, I trust.[/trainspotter]

Couldn't fit it all on the mugs I'm afraid.

the button's picture
the button
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Aug 16 2006 09:57

grin Damn these new forums. embarrassed

Jason Cortez
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Aug 18 2006 22:57

The SolFed pamplet on how to use health and safety as an organising tool is good. Can't remember exact title OTMH. Corporate Watch How to investigate a corporation is really useful. Pamplets like the JJ's Fast Foods are pretty useful in exmining the pros and cons of organising workers who have just joined TUs.

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Aug 19 2006 01:36

'Punching Out' by Martin Glabberman.

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Aug 25 2006 20:18

There is a book called Fighting for Hope: Organising to Realise Our Dreams that is absolutely fucking brilliant. I don't know if the author is identified as an anarchist or not, she certainly never uses the word in the book, but she has a spot-on analysis of a lot of stuff. It's particularly refreshing because a lot of her stories and experience are from the same aprt of Canada as me, which isn't of much interest to assorted Brits and Yanks. She has a really interesting, unique and often accurate view on Canadian history and reality.

I think a lot of what she has to say about organising, group structure, problem soving, resistance etc stands all over the place. If you can manage to get your hands on it, I would reccomend highly.

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Aug 25 2006 21:48

Thank you for that recommendation Gwen. I think I might order that book as it looks very interesting.

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Nate
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Oct 13 2006 21:21

Singlejack Solidarity by Stan Weir.

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Oct 16 2006 23:18
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There is a book called Fighting for Hope: Organising to Realise Our Dreams that is absolutely fucking brilliant.

Turns out the author's former cat now resides with my lover.

He is a fighter of a cat is I've ever met one.

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Jacques Roux
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Oct 16 2006 23:20

Nate / EW - helps if you tell us what the book is about / link to it!

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Nate
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Oct 20 2006 03:23

my bad. here's a link: http://www.akpress.org/2004/items/singlejacksolidarity