Synopses & Reviews
A thoroughly updated edition of the clever, fun-to-read compilation of union language and lore."For close to two centuries, we in the American labor movement have spoken our own language. It is a rich idiom, laden with humor and barbs, heady with history. . . . Problem is, fewer and fewer of us speak it, and even fewer on the outside understand it or know how it came about."from the prefatory note to The Lexicon of Labor
Since its first publication in 1998, The Lexicon of Labor found a large and appreciative following among readers who were grateful to have the vibrant, powerful language of the labor movement captured in a lively single volume. This revised and updated edition includes dozens of new terms and developments and will introduce a new generation to the labor lexicon. From Workies to Wobblies, blue flu to zipper clause, it includes enlightening descriptions of over five hundred key places, people, and events in American labor history.
Murray's highly original volume is a one-of-a-kind encyclopedia of labor in America. A practical resource for students and journalists, it will be as entertaining for longtime union members seeking to get reacquainted with the traditions of the movement as it is for newcomers wishing to discover the unique language and history of unionism.
The Lexicon of Labor also includes explanations of major legislative acts, definitions of key legal terminology, and complete listings of all the member unions of the AFL-CIO and independent unions in the United States. It is the ideal introduction to the history of labor in America.
Synopsis
Since its first publication in 1998, The Lexicon of Labor found a large and appreciative following among readers who were grateful to have the vibrant, powerful language of the labor movement captured in a lively single volume. This revised and updated edition includes dozens of new terms and developments and will introduce a new generation to the labor lexicon. From Workies to Wobblies, blue flu to zipper clause, it includes enlightening descriptions of over five hundred key places, people, and events in American labor history. Murray's highly original volume is a one-of-a-kind encyclopedia of labor in America. A practical resource for students and journalists, it will be as entertaining for longtime union members seeking to get reacquainted with the traditions of the movement as it is for newcomers wishing to discover the unique language and history of unionism. The Lexicon of Labor also includes explanations of major legislative acts, definitions of key legal terminology, and complete listings of all the member unions of the AFL-CIO and independent unions in the United States. It is the ideal introduction to the history of labor in America.
Synopsis
This long-awaited revised and updated edition of
The Lexicon of Labor includes dozens of new terms and developments that will introduce a new generation to the labor lexicon.
From Frederick Douglass to César Chavez, from the Haymarket Riots in 1886 to the Change to Win federation formed in 2005, this classic labor lexicon provides concise, sketches of over five hundred key places, people, and events in American labor history.
About the Author
R. Emmett Murray (19392008), a longtime newspaperman, was past president of the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, Local 82.
Elaine Bernard is the executive director of the Labor and Worklife Program at the Harvard School of Law. She lives in Somerville, Massachusetts.