Wildcat strikes in U.S. manufacturing, 1960–1977

Byrne, Dennis; King, Randall H.

doi:10.1007/bf03179667

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…The nonsignificance of the labor law index was not expected, but this null finding can be reconciled with other findings. Unlike strikes over other noneconomic issues, many plant administration strikes take place during the term of an existing contract (Edwards 1981:182–84) and can be characterized as wildcat strikes that occur without formal sanction of the union (Byrne and King 1986). Wallace (1989) argues that such strikes are in fact rank‐and‐file rebellions against both capitalist employers and the union leadership 16 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

After Taft-Hartley: The Legal-Institutional Context of U.S. Strike Activity, 1948 to 1980

Wallace¹

2007

The Sociological Quarterly

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This article examines how the legal‐institutional context created by American labor law has impacted the frequency, issue composition, and economic damage of strike activity since the passage of the Taft‐Hartley Act. Emphasis on the legal‐institutional context complements conventional perspectives of strike activity which focus on business cycle and political‐organizational interpretations. A new labor law index is developed to measure the legal‐institutional context, and it is comprised of five components: number of pro‐labor laws, National Labor Relations Board unfair labor cases filed, use of antilabor injunctions, labor mediation, and labor arbitration. For the period of 1948 to 1980, high values on the labor law index reduced overall strike frequency, reduced some types of control‐related strikes, had no effect on economic strikes, and decreased working time lost to strikes, especially in the monopoly sector. These findings suggest that the legal‐institutional context of the post‐Taft‐Hartley period has served to regulate and delegitimize expressions of labor unrest that most seriously challenge capitalist interests.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

After Taft-Hartley: The Legal-Institutional Context of U.S. Strike Activity, 1948 to 1980

Wallace¹

2007

The Sociological Quarterly

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“…Union leaders and employers alike have had a stake in ignoring them. 7 Following previous literature (Brett and Goldberg, 1979; Byrne and King, 1986; Dix et al, 1972; Fantasia and Stepan-Norris, 2007), I define wildcat strike events as unauthorized work stoppages brought about by workers during the period of a labor–management agreement. Such agreements typically have no-strike clauses as quid pro quo for the official grievance-and-arbitration procedures, so the fact of an agreement in place typically means – and consistently meant, in the data set I used – that the union did not authorize a strike (Fantasia and Stepan-Norris, 2007).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Need For a Theory Of The Wildcat Strikementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, the volume of strikes that concern non-wage issues is not equally distributed across industries. Rather it is concentrated in several industries, including the manufacturing, construction, and mining sectors (Brett and Goldberg, 1979;Byrne and King, 1986;Fantasia, 1988;Zetka, 1992). 2 Trends that began in the early 2000s are likely to increase the proportion of strikes in the United States that do not relate to wages, such as the vigorous use of social-movement-like union tactics by labor organizers (Fantasia and Stepan-Norris, 2007), making research into unconventional strikes all the more relevant.…”

Section: The Need For a Theory Of The Wildcat Strikementioning

confidence: 99%

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Work environments and workers’ grievances: Accounting for variation in wildcat strikes in the US coal mining industry, 1970–1977

Kim

2016

Economic and Industrial Democracy

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This article examines the role of work environments and workers’ grievances as factors generating wildcat strikes in the US coal mining industry from 1970 to 1977, a period of intense worker–management conflict. Drawing on historical and empirical evidence, it argues that the classical wage-bargaining model of authorized strike activity fails to account for variation in the incidence of wildcat strikes in general, and those in the coal mines in particular. The analysis employs a unique data set on wildcat strikes in the coal industry during the period. This article brings the analysis of the causes of wildcat strikes into closer dialogue with social and labor movement theory.

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“…Although there are no accurate numbers provided by the government, labor strikes are frequently reported in the media (Wright, 2004). Almost all the strikes in China are spontaneous actions by workers, the type of strikes commonly referred to as "wildcat strikes" (Blake, 1977;Byrne and King, 1986). To effectively manage their organizations, Chinese managers need to pay attention to the possibility of the spontaneous unionization of workers and develop an understanding of the causes of unionization.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived equity and unionization propensity in China

Wang¹

2011

Management Research Review

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Purpose -This study aims to examine the relationship between employees' perceived equity and their propensity to unionize in China and the moderating effect of tenure on the relationship. Design/methodology/approach -A survey was administered to 160 employees in a foreign-invested company in China which had experienced a spontaneous labor strike seven months before the study. Findings -The results supported the hypothesis regarding the relationship between workers' perceived equity and their unionization propensity in China. In addition, employee tenure was found to moderate this relationship such that the longer the tenure, the weaker the relationship between perceived equity and unionization propensity. Originality/value -This study provides evidence of the external validity of the relationship between perceived equity and workers' unionization propensity in China. It also demonstrates the different roles employee tenure plays in the relationship. Specifically, senior workers were less likely to join spontaneous unions in China than junior workers when treatment was perceived to be unfair, a noteworthy contrast to existing research findings that senior workers in Western societies are more eager to get involved in union activities than junior workers.

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Wildcat strikes in U.S. manufacturing, 1960–1977

Cited by 11 publications

References 8 publications

After Taft-Hartley: The Legal-Institutional Context of U.S. Strike Activity, 1948 to 1980

After Taft-Hartley: The Legal-Institutional Context of U.S. Strike Activity, 1948 to 1980

Work environments and workers’ grievances: Accounting for variation in wildcat strikes in the US coal mining industry, 1970–1977

Perceived equity and unionization propensity in China

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