The Rise and Fall of Jimmy Hoffa
James Riddle Hoffa greatly changed the way America looked at unions and their members. Hoffa rose from the single parent teachings of his mom to an independent man who would fight for his people. Gaining experience from age seven in defending himself, and gaining leadership experience by leading a warehouse strike at age seventeen, Hoffa was destined to be a fighter. Losing was not in his genes and some may believe losing was not in his vocabulary. Hoffa would let nothing stand in his way from achieving a goal he had set for himself. This determination and perseverance allowed Hoffa to gain the respect and admiration of not only his members, but also the general public. Throughout his tenure within the Teamsters organization, Hoffa used his actions as the backbone for support from his followers and the general public.
Jimmy Hoffa grew up living life as a poor resident of Brazil, Indiana. Along with his brother, Hoffa learned the lesson of family support at the young age of seven. Helping his mother by distributing the clean laundry around town, Hoffa experienced the hardships his mother endured. Later, Hoffa dropped out of high school and helped help support his mother by working at Kroger's Warehouse. Hoffa's harsh childhood molded Hoffa into a man who wanted to accomplish his objectives. "I have no desire to forget where I came from. I am not ashamed of my background. I am proud of it." (Walter, 1972, 68)
Hoffa earned everything he received in life and his work for the Teamsters dignified the ethic he expected the union to receive from its leaders. Rising to president of Local 299 at the young age of twenty-four, his continued display of dedication for the union gained him pre...
... middle of paper ...
...e, 1959, 105 -116.
15. Nossiter, Bernard D., "The Teamsters: Corrupt policemen of and unruly industry", Harper, May, 1959, 70 - 77.
16. Cort, John C., "Labor makes a choice", The Commonweal, 15, March, 1957, 632.
17. Smith, William J., "Labor's Wrongs - and Rights", The Commonweal, 13, March 1959, 618 - 620, 618 -- 620.
18. Livermort, Shawn, "Goldwater and the Union Boss", The New Republic, 17, April, 1961, 7,8.
19. Cort, John C., "Hoffa and the Teamsters", The Commonweal, 27, April, 1957, 636, 637.
20. "The Case against Hoffa", The New Republic, 2, September, 1957, 5, 6.
21. Lens, Sidney, "Dave Beck's Teamsters: sour note in labor history", Harper 15, March, 1956, 74 -- 82.
22. Gomberg, William, "Hoffa: A Study in Power", The Nation, 17, June 1961, 512 -- 515.
23. De Weaver, Norman C., "Hoffa Is in a Hurry", The New Republic, 20, February, 1956, 11 -- 14.
Tensions between union supporters and management began mounting in the years preceding the strike. In April of 1994, the International Union led a three-week strike against major tracking companies in the freight hauling industry in attempts to stop management from creating $9 per hour part-time positions. This would only foreshadow battles to come between management and union. Later, in 1995, teamsters mounted an unprecedented national union campaign in attempts to defeat the labor-management “cooperation” scheme that UPS management tried to establish in order to weaken the union before contract talks (Witt, Wilson). This strike was distinguished from other strikes of recent years in that it was an offensive strike, not a defensive one. It was a struggle in which the union was prepared, fought over issues which it defined, and one which relied overwhelmingly on the efforts of the members themselves (http://www.igc.org/dbacon/Strikes/07ups.htm).
The Web. The Web. 23 Mar. 2014. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/biography/assassination-co-conspirators/>. Bill O'Reilly Biography.
Sloane. A. A., Witney, F. (2010). LABOR RELATIONS (13th editions). Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, NJ
Jimmy Hoffa began his union career as a teenager in the 1930s. A grade school dropout, he almost single handedly built the Teamsters union into an awesome national power. His hammer-handed negotiating techniques, his alleged links to organized crime, and his bitter feuds with John and Robert Kennedy made Hoffa the prototypical labor leader of his day.
Thompson, Paul. “They Tried to Warn Us: Foreign Intelligence Warnings Before 9/11”. Web. 03 Aug 2011.
The organized labor movement from 1875 to 1900 is to blame for the problems unions face today as early labor unions crucified themselves politically, alienated themselves socially and failed to increase the socio-economic position of the worker, and in many cases only succeeded in worsening such positions. The political crucifixion of the early blue-collar industrial worker was directly caused by organized labor. Before such ‘organization, existed, workers flew under the political radar in the best of ways. They were allowed to live peaceful lives and given the unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In fact, the commodore Andrew Carnegie had achieved the American dream in his rags to riches advancement and he offered the same opportunity to each of his workers.
...lley, W. H., Jennings, K. M., Wolters, R. S., & Mathis, R. L. (2012). Employment & Labor Relations. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Throughout the history of the United States of America the continuation of misfortunes for the workforce has aggravated people to their apex, eventually leading to the development of labor unions.
Tischler, Steven. "The Manly Art (Book)." Labor History 28.4 (1987): 562. America: History and Life with Full Text. Web. 4 May 2014.
The unions of disunion were not only a major detriment to increasing the socio-economic standards of the laborer from 1875 to 1900, but also served to backpedal on the progress laborers had already gained out of respect. Perhaps the cornerstone of the unions’ policies was the fight for the improved working hours, specifically and eight hour work day, and increased wages for the laborer. However, Historical Statistics of the Unites States on Hours and Wages of Industrial Workers from 1875 to 1891 proves that no such improvements truly occurred. In fact, only a nominal 3.3 cent increase in wages from 1875 to 1891 occurred, and while it some may argue that the unions are then successful in achieving some increase in wages it is crucial to realize that this nominal increase came at the cost of hundreds, if not thousands, of laborer lives. Certainly a meager 1% increase in wages does not justify such loss of life, and if it is claimed that it does then that is also to warrant the trusts right to pay their laborers so little, as anyone who condones such little increase at such high costs automatically degrades the value of the life of the worker and thus reinforces the trusts’ right to combat unions. Furthermore, it should be noted that the average price of wages through those sixteen years was a measly 161.8, a decline of 8 whole cents from the starting point. Thus we can see that unions did not really gain 3.3 cents in wages, but rather caused a net loss of 8 cents. To even attempt to claim improvement for the laborer would be a completely ludicrous notion. Unfortunately for the laborer, the unions of disunion’s extent of their plight did not stop at the ruining of the worker’s economic position through the loss of wages, but also thr...
Smith, Emily E. "How Did the CIA Find Bin Laden? A Phone Call, a Courier, and Years of Detective Work."
10.) Gates, David. "A New Whack at the Borden Case." Newsweek, June 4, 1984: 12.
The Industrial Revolution that took place after the Civil War made for a more economically sound country. American workers, however, were becoming more and more dependent upon their wages; a fear of unemployment also stemmed from this. Workers didn’t share in the benefits that their employers reaped. In a chart representing the hours and wages of industrial workers, from 1875 to 1891, it shows that even though their wages were subtly increasing, their 10-hour work day remained the same (Doc. A). Factories were headed by large corporations; this, in turn, meant that new machines lessened the amount of workers in certain fields. As a result of these unsuitable conditions, labor unions were formed. The challenges that these unions faced weren’t easy. If the workers involved in organized labor got too far out of line, these corporations could get federal authorities involved. Moreover, these companies could enforce “ironclad oaths” upon their employees. In a Western Union Telegraph Company employee contract, in 1883, it states that the employee will not be affiliated with any societies or organizations (Doc. E). Despite such setbacks, by 1872 there were over 32 national unions.
One of the greatest civil rights activists of our time; one who believed the ways of Gandhi and Martin Luther King that “violence can only hurt us and our cause” (Cesar Chavez); a quiet, devoted, small catholic man who had nothing just like those he help fight for; “one of America's most influential labor leaders of the late twentieth century” (Griswold del Castillo); and one “who became the most important Mexican-American leader in the history of the United States” (Ender). Cesar Chavez; an American farm worker, who would soon become the labor leader that led to numerous improvements for union workers; it is recorded that Chavez was born near Yuma, Arizona on March 31, 1927 and died on April 23, 1993 in San Luis, Arizona. (Wikipedia) His life affected many others as his unselfish deeds changed the labor union force forever. This essay will discuss the reasons Cesar Chavez became involved in Union rights, the immediate impact he had, and also the legacy he left behind with his actions that influenced American society.
Elizabeth Flynn, “The Industrial Workers of the World and the Free Speech Fights,” in Voices of Freedom. Ed. By Eric Foner