Labor Relations

Millie Allen Beik is an independent labor historian who currently works as a reference librarian at Georgia Perimeter College. She earned her doctorate at Northern Illinois University and has taught history at Emory University and the Georgia Institute of Technology. The International Labor History Association honored her book, The Miners of Windber: The Struggles of New Immigrants for Unionization, 1890s-1930s (1996) as the Best Book of the Year in 1996.

• ContentsContentsContentsSeries Foreword by Randall M. Miller xiiiPreface and Acknowledgments xviiChronology of Events xxiIntroduction 31.The Uneven Emergence of a Labor Movement, 1827–1837 192.The New England Shoemakers' Strike of 1860 413.The Railroad Strikes of 1877 594.The Pullman Strike and Boycott of 1894 795.The Lawrence Strike of 1912 1016.The Miners' Program, 1919–1923 1237.The General Textile Strike of 1934 1498.The General Motors Sit-Down Strike of 1936–1937 1739.The Labor Management Relations (Taft-Hartley) Act of 1947 19710.The Memphis Sanitation Strike of 1968 22311.The Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) Strike of 1981 249Selected Bibliography 273Index 279

A volume in the Major Issues in American History series, this historical survey of key developments in US labor relations begins with the emergence of a labor movement in the 1820s and 1830s and ends with the air traffic controllers' strike in 1981. Following an introductory overview, Beik takes up 11 events as turning points of union development. Some chapters focus on well-known labor disputes, such as the Pullman strike of 1894, the General Motors sit-down strike of 1936-7, and the Memphis sanitation workers' strike in 1968. Other chapters deal with more general topics, including the enactment of the Labor-Management Relations (Taft-Hartley) Act of 1947 and the miner's program of 1919-23. Each chapter consists of a preliminary essay, a set of historical documents, and a selected bibliography of additional readings. A concluding section lists books, Internet sites, and films and videos relevant to industrial relations. Altogether, a good basic introduction to important topics in labor history. Highly recommended. General readers; students, lower-division undergraduate and up; practitioners.