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Labor in Retreat: Class and Community among Men's Clothing Workers of Chicago, 1871-1929

By (author) Youngsoo Bae

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Offers a fresh perspective on the origins of business unionism. Winner of the 2002 Annual Award in the Publications/Scholarly category presented by the Illinois State Historical Society and Association of Illinois Museums and Historical Societies Why did the American labor movement decline in the 1920s? This is a question historians have often answered by pointing at the adverse circumstances begetting the movement, such as chronic recessions in many industries, a conservative political climate, and divisiveness along racial, ethnic, and skill levels among American workers. But how did workers cope with the circumstances? What role did they play in the waning movement? Based on research into the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA), an industrial union with a progressive posture, Labor in Retreat details workplace politics in a larger context and presents a fresh view on the origins of business unionism, with significant implications for a different perspective on American immigration history. Focusing on Chicago and using a wealth of primary sources, Youngsoo Bae analyzes residential patterns, social institutions, and social relationships and posits that the weakened sense of community among ethnic groups after World War I, rather than the unfavorable atmosphere of the day, had a major impact upon the ACWA turning toward business unionism. Proposing a fresh perspective on American immigration history, which embraces both the old and revisionist models, Labor in Retreat also suggests a different conception of class, community, and space as it explores these issues related to the American labor movement.