Ravenswood: The Steelworkers' Victory and the Revival of American Labor (Ilr Press Books) [Paperback]

Tom Juravich (Author), Kate Bronfenbrenner (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0801486661 | ISBN-13: 978-0801486661 | Publication Date: May 2000

Over the past two decades, Americans have seen their workplaces downsized and streamlined, their jobs out-sourced, sped up, and, all too often, eliminated. Unions have seemed powerless to defend their members, with big defeats in the strikes at PATCO, Eastern Airlines, International Paper, and Hormel. Ravenswood recounts how the United Steelworkers of America, in a battle waged over an aluminum plant in West Virginia, proved that organized labor can still win--even against a company controlled by one of the world's richest and most powerful men. Fast paced and compellingly written, the book provides an insider's look at the new tactics that many hope will revitalize the struggle for workers' rights in America. On November 1, 1990, just as its contract with the United Steelworkers of America was about to expire, Ravenswood Aluminum Corporation locked out its seventeen hundred employees and hired permanent replacements. Despite deteriorating conditions that had led to five deaths in the previous year, the company had refused to discuss safety and health issues. The locked-out workers faced an industry in turmoil, a plant manager with a grudge against the union, and a business controlled by a billionaire fugitive from justice. Tom Juravich and Kate Bronfenbrenner describe how victory was achieved through the commitment of the workers and their families coupled with one of the most innovative contract campaigns ever waged by an American union.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Cornell University Press (May 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801486661
• ISBN-13: 978-0801486661
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #922,398 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hope for Labor, July 25, 2000

By 

Stephen M. Kenney (Hurricane, WV United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ravenswood: The Steelworkers' Victory and the Revival of American Labor (Ilr Press Books) (Paperback)

During the Reagan era of the National Labor Relations Board, the labor climate in America was decidedly pro-employer. Yet even against that bias, the workers at the Ravenswood Aluminum Company were able to prevail against Emmett Boyle and his cohorts. This victory resulted from a combination of the egregious conduct of Boyle et al and the tenacious protests of the Steelworkers. Juravich and Bronfenbrenner detail how the workers built a successful campaign which capitalized on the gaffes committed by RAC and exposed the criminality of ownership's conduct. The authors follow this campaign as it progressed in the United States and abroad. The narrative is extremely readable, with character insights into the leading forces on both sides of the issue. The narrative bogs down a little when detailing the trek across Europe, but it does not become slow enough to make one set the book aside.

In an era when the grandchildren of union workers question the need for unions, and at times even lay blame at the feet of unions, this book is a reminder of the evils which would otherwise be unchecked, were it not for effective labor organizations. If not unions, what would be the check on the conduct of management? Will quarterly reports to shareholders, who are only concerned with profits, insure worker safety? Will often unenforced criminal laws mold the conduct of people like Emmett Boyle? Will OSHA regulations insure fairness? Is it possible that our tort system will protect the economically disadvantaged workers in battles against the deep pockets of management? Only an effective organized labor movement can adequately protect today's workers from abuses inherent in the system. Without being obnoxiously ideological, the authors powerfully convey this sentiment.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A must read for those interested in Labor's struggles..., November 13, 2000

By 

J. Michael Showalter (Nashville, TN United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Ravenswood: The Steelworkers' Victory and the Revival of American Labor (Ilr Press Books) (Paperback)

This is a book about a strike against an aluminum plant in West Virginia by the United Steelworkers labor union in the early nineties. First, this is a genuinely good read (just based on the story....) with characters (all be they real...) that you root for and others that you shy away from (Emmitt Boyle and Marc Rich are drawn as evil incarnate....) Aside from this, this book serves as a record of a number of things: 1) a model for how a small-town labor struggle could be conducted on a broad-based front; 2) the ways in which capital does not exist in a locality so much as scattered throughout the world; and 3) an illustration of how labor stoppages in small towns have evolved from the days of Pinkerton thugs and picket lines to something more conplex and... well, modern....

I'd really recommend this book to about anyone but, well, honestly, only people really into labor are ever going to read this. This is a really good book....

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Ravenswood a must for activists", December 10, 1999

By 

mike matejka - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ravenswood: The Steelworkers' Victory and the Revival of American Labor (ILR Press books) (Hardcover)

"Ravenswood" details the fight of West Virginia steelworkers to maintain their jobs and community against a multinational employer. This book echoes the workers' voices and their struggle. Innovative tactics gave these workers tools to not only wage an effective local effort, but an impressive international one as well. This is a key for labor's revitalization and an important book for activists.