September 2, 2019
Greenhouse, a former labor reporter for the New York Times, offers an inspirational greatest-hits look at the past, present, and future of American workers’ movements. He argues that a decline in the power of organized labor has been both cause and consequence of several other blights over the past 40 years, including income inequality; wage stagnation; the proliferation of low-security, low-wage jobs; and the rise of a political culture dominated by corporations and billionaires. Greenhouse kicks off with a series of illustrative, diverse “profiles in courage”; there’s Clara Lemlich and the garment workers’ strikes in turn-of-the-last-century New York City, or United Auto Workers president Walter Reuther’s efforts to lift auto workers and others into the postwar middle class from the 1930s on. The author follows them with episodes from labor’s subsequent stagnation and embattlement, through which he considers the effects of deregulation, globalization, automation, the rise of “investor capitalism,” anti-labor politics, and “labor’s self-inflicted wounds” (corruption, complacency, ambivalence about social justice movements). Greenhouse ends with some recent labor successes—including the “Fight for $15” and the profitable, harmonious relationship between workers and management at the hospital chain Kaiser Permanente—and suggestions for a broadly revivified labor movement. This collection will satisfy readers who seek an introduction to labor history or ideas about how American workers can regain some power.
June 1, 2019
Greenhouse, who covered labor for the New York Times, has provided a human dimension to the tale of income inequality, wage stagnation, and employer disrespect for workers. He doesn't steer clear of statistics, documenting the dramatic decline of labor unions over the past several decades, exacerbated by the Trump administration and other antiunion actions, including Scott Walker's in Wisconsin. There are a few positive exceptions: culinary workers in Las Vegas, teachers in several locations, the sanitation workers in Memphis. As the author (The Big Squeeze, 2008) readily admits, this is not a full history of labor, but it covers a lot. The book's historical chapters are overly selective but do include informative sections on the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire, FDR's Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins, and the impact of sit-down strikes. The period of labor's decline, the book's best section, covers the decimation of the air-traffic controllers' organization. The present (Lyft and Uber, for starters) is discussed, including some gains (the minimum-wage movement and progress in Florida and California). Greenhouse also proposes what hopefully are workable ideas for future workers' movements.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)
July 1, 2019
Journalist Greenhouse presents a sympathetic but critical survey of American labor since 1900, providing rich portraits of individuals and groups who have faced challenges in their working lives. While focusing primarily on efforts to organize employees and the situation of unions, the author nonetheless occasionally considers the plight of laborers outside of that movement, including low-wage and independent workers in recent years. Rather than a clearly defined chronology, he describes vivid episodes about laboring people over more than a century to demonstrate the historical development of labor conditions and counteracting actions by workers. Since this is not a survey of labor history, some decades, events, and people get noticeably more attention than others. Dramatic chapters cover tragedies such as the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, successes such as the Sit-Down Strikes, and failures, including the PATCO Strike. Portraits of union leader Walter Reuther's effectiveness are followed by discussion of failures by the next generation of officials and more recent developments in the gig economy. VERDICT Although somewhat uneven in its coverage of labor history, this lively and informative read will appeal to those interested in the current challenges facing American workers. [See Prepub Alert, 2/18/19.]--Charles K. Piehl, Minnesota State Univ., Mankato
Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
July 1, 2019
Greenhouse, who covered labor for over two decades at the New York Times and won New York Press Club, Deadline Club, Gerald Loeb, and Hillman honors for his efforts, here addresses the long-term decline of labor power as wages stagnate, low-wage jobs multiply, and unions lose their clout. He profiles dozens of American workers to clarify these issues and argues for new ways that workers' power can be set fire again.
Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Starred review from June 1, 2019
The subtitle says it all in a powerful book from an author who is "deeply concerned about what is happening to many American workers." Former longtime New York Times reporter Greenhouse (The Big Squeeze: Tough Times for the American Worker, 2008) offers a combination of labor union history in America, investigative reporting about how rapacious employers and Republican governance have diminished labor unions, and an agenda for the revitalization of unions across the country. Throughout the narrative, the author circles back to the puzzle at the foundation of the book: Given how clearly labor unions improved employment conditions for hundreds of millions of laborers, why did those benefitting surrender to the corporate-government plan to eliminate those unions? With copious evidence, Greenhouse demonstrates that unionized workers received--and still receive from existing unions--not only improved wages, but also safer work conditions, predictable schedules, more comprehensive insurance, improved retirement benefits, increased paid vacation periods, and much more. As he notes, while it's true that some union leaders were guilty of corruption and/or indifference, for the most part, they have protected workers more avidly than corporate executives, who are more beholden to stockholders than employees. In many cases, corporate lobbyists prevail; as a result, the negotiating arena is no longer equitable for unions. Before a closing chapter recommending numerous alterations in laws and regulations, the author demonstrates how other nations, especially in Europe, have instituted much more equitable systems. "Europeans," he writes, "often deride America's $7.25-an-hour minimum wage as McJobs, while McDonald's workers in highly unionized Denmark average more than $20 an hour." Greenhouse's message is unambiguous: "In no other industrial nation do employers fight so hard to defeat, indeed quash, labor unions." Throughout the book, the author interweaves positive examples of labor-management collaborations that lead to a more productive workforce. These bits of hope come from anecdotes about culinary workers unionizing in Las Vegas, fast-food workers advocating for an increased minimum wage, and public school teachers going on strike. A clearly written, impressively researched, and accomplished follow-up to The Big Squeeze.
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