Lessons from Hollywood’s Labor Strife
In September, the Writers Guild of America-West (WGA) ended its strike against the Hollywood studios; in early November, the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA reached its deal with the studios. The Hollywood…
United Auto Workers (UAW)
InfluenceWatch Podcast #288: UAW on Strike
The United Auto Workers union has called rolling strikes against the Detroit Three automakers—Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler) since mid-September. The labor action, and other strikes including the…
What You Need to Know About the UAW Strike
Last night, the United Auto Workers (UAW) called strikes at production facilities of the Detroit Three automakers Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler). Whether the strike will actually be…
Donors in Hell to Pay
In politics, “[a]long with upscale, educated, hyper-ideological primary voters, the selectorate of each party includes affluent party donors,” according to Michael Lind in his important new book Hell to Pay:…
Corruption in the Labor Movement: Labor Rackets
Corruption by labor union officials, whether in service to themselves, political allies, or organized crime syndicates, has been a fixture of American labor history since the labor movement first began…
Corruption in the Labor Movement: A New Cast of Thieves
What is likely the largest federal union corruption investigation since the 1990s centered on a kickback scheme run through a joint union-management training center. Fiat Chrysler executives and agents would…
Corruption in the Labor Movement: Philly’s Labor Fixer
Before 2019, John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty Jr., the longtime business manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 98, was one of the most powerful men in Pennsylvania. From…
Corruption in the Labor Movement: Indictments
It has been over 30 years since then-U.S. Attorney Rudy Giuliani announced a civil Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations lawsuit against the International Brotherhood of Teamsters that would lead to…
Sectoral Bargaining Comes to California
Desperate to restore its position of power in the economy, the labor union movement continues to look to sectoral bargaining as a solution. On Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D)…
VIDEO: Jimmy Hoffa’s Corrupt Union Culture Lives On
Netflix and Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman brought the crimes of the nation’s most prominent union leader, Jimmy Hoffa, back to public consciousness in a way they haven’t been since Hoffa’s…