The origins of the union shop - Tom Wetzel
Article about the practice and limitations of union (closed) shops in the US workers' movement in the 1930s and 40s. In particular it examines how they helped unions act as a tool of discipline over workers as opposed to a tool for defending their interests.
Wartime strikes: The struggle against the no-strike pledge in the UAW during World War II - Martin Glaberman
Martin Glaberman's examination of American car industry workers wildcat strike wave, despite their own union's no strike pledge, during World War 2.
Competition, bankruptcy, and the decline of the United Auto Workers
Submitted by John E Jacobsen on Sep 23 2011 23:44
September 21st, 2011: The United Auto Workers and General Motors are wrapping up contract negotiations following their previous contract’s expiration on September 14th.
United States: Workers on the Move - Fred Pilgotsky
Article appearing in International Socialism, No.70, Mid-June 1974, by auto worker and socialist Fred Pilgotsky. In it he talks about wildcats in the auto industry, the conflicts between the unions and the rank-and-file, and the significance of race in the US.
The Left in the Detroit Labour Movement - Martin Glaberman
Martin Glaberman reviews - and contests the accuracy and honesty of - two books on the Detroit union movement.
“The bottom line isn't the whole thing”: Detroit, anti-racism and labour history
New Beginnings interviews a Detroit militant with decades of organizing experience in the area.
Father of Cybernetics Norbert Wiener's Letter to UAW President Walter Reuther
Submitted by apophasis on Jan 24 2011 05:55
1949 letter from a leading scientist to the head of the American auto workers union warning him about new technology and the negative impact it would have on manufacturing workers.
The American worker - Paul Romano and Ria Stone
Submitted by Steven. on Dec 28 2009 18:32
An extensive two-part article on factory workers in the US in 1947. In the first half, auto worker Phil Singer (using the pen name, Paul Romano) vividly describes factory life, and in the second, Grace Lee Boggs (using the pseudonym, Ria Stone) outlines a Marxist analysis.
Wildcat! The wartime strike wave in the auto industry - Ed Jennings
Submitted by Steven. on Dec 22 2009 18:21
Ed Jennings' account of the widespread movement of wildcat strikes in the United States auto industry during the period of the union-agreed no strike pledge.
In the heart of the heart of the country: The strike at Lordstown - Peter Herman
Submitted by Steven. on Dec 18 2009 15:57
A detailed historical account and analysis of the dispute at the General Motors Lordstown plant in the early 1970s, examining the largely self-organised workers' sabotage and the union-controlled strike.
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