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A Troublemaker's Handbook 2: How to Fight Back Where You Work--and Win!
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- GenresLaborNonfictionPolitics
372 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2005
3 people are currently reading
99 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 4, 2024
Must reading for every leader, especially those right on the factory floor, construction site, or office. This is an inspiring book with real life stories that can be used to create ‘good trouble,’ as Congressman John Lewis often said.
Jane Slaughter did an exceptional job editing this handbook with practical advice, sources for more learning, and rousing stories of workplace power created by people who learned by doing. The book provides a foundation to allow people to take bit size pieces, reminding the read that one should not be afraid, building networks of workers, inviting co-workers into the struggle for the dignity of work, and reaching out to the community. As a long-time unionist, it can be overwhelming but this book provides practical advice from the ground view instead of highlighting struggles that can’t be replicated from a local leader perspective.
There are so many fun stories in this book, reminding me of my own years leading a local union then the central labor body: skits, songs, props, puppets, 15-minute strikes, using the internet (remember, this book was written nearly 20 years ago), work to rule campaigns,
And the book covers shop floor disputes, contract struggles, immigration issues, privatization, student organizing, labor-environment coalitions, faith-based groups, union organizing, pension fights, organizing day laborers, and international solidarity. But remember, this book is written to be used, not to allow the various contributors to brag about their successes. Fact, repeatedly throughout the book, the honesty of how difficult this work is to make progress is raised in a way that will be helpful to others. It was fun to see the names of my friends from throughout the country mentioned in the book, including my long-time friend Seth Rosen who taught me so much about engaging members to help resolve their own issues and build power, lessons I still use today.
I read this book feeling the excitement I first felt when I got involved as a steward in an Ohio Bell (an AT&T company) office, building a progressive safety committee, then initiating steward training for the first time in a long-time. I thought about the struggles we had in fighting office closings, including a large call center, leading the first strike I had ever been engaged in, setting up ‘just practicing days,’ fighting contracting out of work with a cartoon of the president of the company that triggered the company to censor our union bulletin boards for the first time (We cut out the ‘offensive cartoon’ and placed a notice on the board that it was censored by the company using our current contract language but members could see the cartoon if they saw a steward), and holding contract meetings at the worksite before building a mobilization system and triggering member action days. As I read this book, those actions flooded my mind and reminded me that many more books could be developed with other ideas and approaches to help workers build their own power.
How to make this book better? It’s been nearly 20 years…when is Handbook 3 being published? Over 350 pages was not enough for this long-time ‘good trouble’ maker.
Jane Slaughter did an exceptional job editing this handbook with practical advice, sources for more learning, and rousing stories of workplace power created by people who learned by doing. The book provides a foundation to allow people to take bit size pieces, reminding the read that one should not be afraid, building networks of workers, inviting co-workers into the struggle for the dignity of work, and reaching out to the community. As a long-time unionist, it can be overwhelming but this book provides practical advice from the ground view instead of highlighting struggles that can’t be replicated from a local leader perspective.
There are so many fun stories in this book, reminding me of my own years leading a local union then the central labor body: skits, songs, props, puppets, 15-minute strikes, using the internet (remember, this book was written nearly 20 years ago), work to rule campaigns,
And the book covers shop floor disputes, contract struggles, immigration issues, privatization, student organizing, labor-environment coalitions, faith-based groups, union organizing, pension fights, organizing day laborers, and international solidarity. But remember, this book is written to be used, not to allow the various contributors to brag about their successes. Fact, repeatedly throughout the book, the honesty of how difficult this work is to make progress is raised in a way that will be helpful to others. It was fun to see the names of my friends from throughout the country mentioned in the book, including my long-time friend Seth Rosen who taught me so much about engaging members to help resolve their own issues and build power, lessons I still use today.
I read this book feeling the excitement I first felt when I got involved as a steward in an Ohio Bell (an AT&T company) office, building a progressive safety committee, then initiating steward training for the first time in a long-time. I thought about the struggles we had in fighting office closings, including a large call center, leading the first strike I had ever been engaged in, setting up ‘just practicing days,’ fighting contracting out of work with a cartoon of the president of the company that triggered the company to censor our union bulletin boards for the first time (We cut out the ‘offensive cartoon’ and placed a notice on the board that it was censored by the company using our current contract language but members could see the cartoon if they saw a steward), and holding contract meetings at the worksite before building a mobilization system and triggering member action days. As I read this book, those actions flooded my mind and reminded me that many more books could be developed with other ideas and approaches to help workers build their own power.
How to make this book better? It’s been nearly 20 years…when is Handbook 3 being published? Over 350 pages was not enough for this long-time ‘good trouble’ maker.
June 4, 2018
What a practical piece of work!!! Realistic solutions for realistic situations to be performed in real-time. Every executive board should include chapter reviews in their meetings as well as in the general membership meetings. This handbook gives the opportunity for every union member to be a lucrative troublemaker.
May 28, 2018
Dense with inspiring stories and useful advice. This has already stepped up my union work tremendously!
November 30, 2007
Really good at a strategical introduction to for a new organizer in the labor movement. Straight forward and comprehensive. A wealth of ideas to work from. I have found that the organizing ideas go way far beyond labor organizing.
Want to read
August 31, 2008I fought back and lost.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews