The Politics of Right to Work: The Labor Federations as Special Interests, 1943-1979

(Hardback)

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Gall has compiled what is almost certainly the definitive study of right-to-work campaigns at the national and state levels since the early 1940's. . . . The author's emphasis on carefully documenting these campaigns means that this book will primarily interest specialists in political science and labor history. Further, this book will be a handy reference source for other readers who want to separate rhetoric from reality on this contentious issue. Choice The Politics of Right to Work presents both a comprehensive history of organized labor's response to the challenges posed by the right to work movement and an in-depth examination of the partisan political dimensions of that challenge. The first full-length treatment of the subject to cover the period from the early 1940s through the late 1970s, the study uses qualitative and quantative analytical techniques to examine the political implications of states' attempts to restrict union security since the first right-to-work laws were passed in Novermber 1944.

Reviews

Gall has compiled what is almost certainly the definitive study of right-to-work campaigns at the national and state levels since the early 1940's. Perhaps no other political issue has so aroused pro-union and antiunion partisans over the years as right-to-work laws. . . The author's emphasis on carefully documenting these campaigns means that this book will primarily interest specialists in political science and labor history. Further, this book will be a handy reference source for other readers who want to separate rhetoric from reality on this contentious issue.-Choice
Gilbert J. Gall, assistant professor of labor studies at Pennsylvania State University, has provided a qualitative, as well as quantitative, study of the role of American labor in its response from 1943 until 1979 to the right-to-work movement. The author focuses upon labor's attempt to legitimize union security' in the face of the politics of right-to-work, which, as implied in Gall's presentation, is grounded in the politically specious argument of workers' freedom of choice' in the American economic market place. Moreover, this study uses the right-to-work issue at both the state and national levels as an analytical tool to examine the dynamics of organized labor's special interest influence in the context of modern American politics, and more particularly, to attempt a balanced evaluation, based upon both qualitative and quantitative evidence, of the overall effectiveness of labor's partisan alliance with the Democratic party.' Gall successfully builds upon a dual theoretical and historical framework by incorporating a working definition of union security' within a historical context of the American labor movement prior to and during the time of the passage of New Deal collective bargaining legislation in the 1930s. Moreover, his use of original resource materials (that include information from archives of labor organizations, the manuscripts of key political leaders, and the records of pro-right-to-work individuals and businesses) provides a solid foundation for a detailed chronological description of the politics of confrontation involving states' attempts to restrict union security since the first right-to-work laws were enacted in the mid 1940s. Gall also carefully notesnational cyclical successes and failures by labor, particularly in the Congress. The author's most important contribution is his use of the Rice Index of Cohesion, as a quantitative measurement, in substantiating the hypothesis of a close working relationship between labor organizations and the Democratic party, excepting the southern conservative wing. This well-written, clearly documented volume would be of interest in not only to those who have an interest in labor relations, but also to those who are students of interest groups and political parties. Its timeliness sets the stage in assessing the role of labor's influence, as unions struggle to regain their membership within the context of a markedly conservative 1980s electorate.-Perspective
This book is an interesting, thoroughly documented, and provocative study of the politics of the "right to work" issue at the state and national level from the early 1940s to the late 1970s written from the perspective of organized labor. . . . This is an excellent book for scholars of political science, government, and history as well as industrial relations specialists.-American Historical Review
"Gall has compiled what is almost certainly the definitive study of right-to-work campaigns at the national and state levels since the early 1940's. Perhaps no other political issue has so aroused pro-union and antiunion partisans over the years as right-to-work laws. . . The author's emphasis on carefully documenting these campaigns means that this book will primarily interest specialists in political science and labor history. Further, this book will be a handy reference source for other readers who want to separate rhetoric from reality on this contentious issue."-Choice
"This book is an interesting, thoroughly documented, and provocative study of the politics of the "right to work" issue at the state and national level from the early 1940s to the late 1970s written from the perspective of organized labor. . . . This is an excellent book for scholars of political science, government, and history as well as industrial relations specialists."-American Historical Review
"Gilbert J. Gall, assistant professor of labor studies at Pennsylvania State University, has provided a qualitative, as well as quantitative, study of the role of American labor in its response from 1943 until 1979 to the right-to-work movement. The author focuses upon labor's attempt to legitimize union security' in the face of the politics of right-to-work, which, as implied in Gall's presentation, is grounded in the politically specious argument of workers' freedom of choice' in the American economic market place. Moreover, this study uses the right-to-work issue at both the state and national levels as an analytical tool to examine the dynamics of organized labor's special interest influence in the context of modern American politics, and more particularly, to attempt a balanced evaluation, based upon both qualitative and quantitative evidence, of the overall effectiveness of labor's partisan alliance with the Democratic party.' Gall successfully builds upon a dual theoretical and historical framework by incorporating a working definition of union security' within a historical context of the American labor movement prior to and during the time of the passage of New Deal collective bargaining legislation in the 1930s. Moreover, his use of original resource materials (that include information from archives of labor organizations, the manuscripts of key political leaders, and the records of pro-right-to-work individuals and businesses) provides a solid foundation for a detailed chronological description of the politics of confrontation involving states' attempts to restrict union security since the first right-to-work laws were enacted in the mid 1940s. Gall also carefully notesnational cyclical successes and failures by labor, particularly in the Congress. The author's most important contribution is his use of the Rice Index of Cohesion, as a quantitative measurement, in substantiating the hypothesis of a close working relationship between labor organizations and the Democratic party, excepting the southern conservative wing. This well-written, clearly documented volume would be of interest in not only to those who have an interest in labor relations, but also to those who are students of interest groups and political parties. Its timeliness sets the stage in assessing the role of labor's influence, as unions struggle to regain their membership within the context of a markedly conservative 1980s electorate."-Perspective

Author Bio

GIBLERT J. GALL is Assistant Professor of Labor Studies at Pennsylvania State University.