The Wobblies: The Story of Syndicalism in the United States. by Patrick RenshawReview by: Edgar R. CzarneckiIndustrial and Labor Relations Review, Vol. 22, No. 1 (Oct., 1968), pp. 134-135Published by: Cornell University, School of Industrial & Labor RelationsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2520698 .

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134 INDUSTRIAL AND LABOR RELATIONS REVIEW

and, in at least some instances, less rapid productivity growth have led to rising labor costs, rising relative prices, and some elimina- tion of small firms.

Construction and trucking are apparently in transition from small-scale to large-scale industry. Markets are "broadening," demand is growing, and technological and organi- zational changes (often in response to union pressures) are occurring rapidly. In the process, the unions are winning a large share of the gains. One sentence illustrates a prob- lem which many economists will have with Pierson's analysis:

If the pace of demand expansion and techno- logical improvements can be maintained at rela- tively high rates, the majority of firms can keep ahead of the rise in hourly pay standards and the inhibiting effects of the unions' bargaining poli- cies can largely be avoided.-pp. 118-119. But surely a high rate of wage increase may produce a good deal of economic effect to be "assessed," even if it coincides with an un- usually high rate of productivity increase.

Pierson's major theme is that the economic impact of unionism must be analyzed on an industry-by-industry basis, and that it de- pends on a combination of environmental and internal forces characteristic of each in- dustry. Most students will agree with this proposition and wish that the analysis had been more successful in identifying the vari- ables and developing the evidence. From this position the author goes on to a brief dis- cussion of policy implications.

His policy conclusions can be summarized in the following quotations.

Thus, the influence of unions appears to be weakest with respect to the general price-em- ployment level where the case for broad govern- mental measures is presumably the most com- pelling, and to be strongest with respect to high- ly vulnerable industries like construction and trucking where such measures are most difficult to implement-p. 121. Since unions have their most adverse eco- nomic effects on particular industries rather than on the general level of wages, prices, and employment, the author concludes that ... simple, narrow remedies cannot possibly be effective. A broader strategy in which govern- ment, labor, and management address themselves to an industry's underlying problems would offer considerably more promise of success. Under this approach the government's voluntary wage-price

guidelines would provide no more than general reference points within which various tripartite undertakings could take place.-p. 132. In view of his expressed goals, Pierson prob- ably should not be criticized for failing to discuss how government, labor, and manage- ment might successfully address themselves to the "underlying problems" of, say, the truck- ing industry in a manner which would solve the dilemmas outlined in the earlier chapter.

Within the context of Pierson's expressed goals, it can be said that he has written a book which most labor economists will feel offers a limited amount of new material, but which most general economists will find not rigorous enough in its analysis to be useful. In view of the size of the book and its avail- ability in paperback, the main audience is probably intended to be the student or the elusive intelligent and interested nonspecial- ist. For this group, the book will have con- siderable value, although the tentative nature of the conclusions and the qualifications ap- pended to most statements are likely to leave the reader somewhat frustrated.

Joseph W. Garbarino Director Institute of Business

and Economic Research University of California, Berkeley

The Wobblies: The Story of Syndicalism in the United States. By Patrick Ren- shaw. New York: Doubleday, 1967. 312 pp. $5.95.

In today's age of ideological conflicts, physical destructions, and student demonstra- tions, a book subtitled The Story of Syndi- calism in the United States may appear to be of current significance and timeliness, in addition to giving a historical account of a past phenomenon. If this is the dual intent of Patrick Renshaw's The Wobblies, it fails totally regarding the former but adequately satisfies the latter.

Here is a good, straightforward-perhaps too straightforward-account of one of the most interesting eras in American history, the rapid rise and fall of the Industrial Workers of the World. Extracting substantially from previous accounts of the IWW, primarily Brissenden, Gambs, and Kornbluh, plus using current labor histories of Pelling and Ray-

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BOOK REVIEWS 135

back, in addition to a host of letters, news- paper articles, convention proceedings, and personal interviews, Renshaw accomplishes a clear review of the people and events in- volved in the abortive attempt at revolu- tionary syndicalist trade unionism in Amer- ica. He does an excellent job of identifying such people as Eugene Debs, Daniel DeLeon, Victor Berger, Vincent St. John, and Mary Harris (Mother Jones) who were involved in the early formation of left-wing unionism; but he does a much better job of directing the reader through the maze of organizations and structures which were intrinsically inter- mingled in history, such as the Socialist Labor party, Socialist Trade and Labor Alliance, Western Federation of Miners, Western La- bor Union, and such colorful organizations as Bronco Busters and Range Riders Union, The One Big Union, and the Sawmill and Lumber Workers.

Renshaw re-identifies people throughout the book, no matter how many times their names may have appeared earlier. This is extremely helpful, especially with the minor characters involved. In the Index, a short biographical sketch follows the names of the more important individuals associated with the IWW.

Perhaps the best chapter in the book is the account of the trial and execution of Joe Hill, the gifted folk poet of the movement. Although this is a moving chapter, it illus- trates one of the shortcomings of the book- the lack of interpretation and analysis of the events of the day. There is a bit of specu- lation whether Joe Hill was really guilty, but it is never fully explored and one is left with some doubt as to just what occurred. To quote the author:

His [Hill's] conviction was doubtful and his death sentence should almost certainly have been commuted, but fifty years after the case it is hard for an impartial observer not to admit that a reasonable doubt exists about Hill's innocence too.-p. 205.

The book is strewn with general observa- tions, unsupported in many instances by the reported facts; for example, "The plain fact was that the American working class was not interested in socialist theory with its mil- lennial promises." ". . . collective leadership was not suited to eastern conditions where masses of partly assimilated immigrant work- ers needed firm direction to unite for in-

dustrial action on a permanent basis." Or, finally, "The goal of creating general dis- order through strikes which would lead to bloody revolution was never seriously con- templated by IWW leaders."

One valuable contribution the author makes is to differentiate between the two- pronged attack of the IWW: on one side, the attempt to help the hoboes, migrants of the west; on the other, to assist the industrial immigrants in the east. This led to the internal IWW disputes over central organi- zation versus local autonomy, anarchism ver- sus syndicalism, and authoritarian state social- ism versus "voluntary socialism." This theme of dualism and its ramifications was of con- stant concern to Renshaw, and this is one area where he does do a bit of interpretive analysis. Yet, he makes no basic analysis of the differences between the IWW and the AFL, or the WFM and the AFL; nor does he directly connect the methods and ideology of the IWW to the CIO.

The book seems to present an accurate description of the events of the time, with each chapter cleverly introduced by a song or poem of the IWW era. It is a simple, easy to read, historical account, interspersed with broad general assumptions but lacking any interpretive analysis. The author undoubted- ly has spent considerable time researching and reviewing all secondary sources. He never once, however, relates this era to the current problems of our society, particularly the prob- lem of how to help the poor, unskilled, un- organized, and unwanted sections of our society who exist in the midst of untold afflu- ence. Although in the introduction the au- thor expresses hope that this study may be of more than academic interest, he fails to do more than present a readable account of a fascinating era.

Edgar R. Czarnecki Assistant Professor College of Business Administration The University of Iowa

Organizational Behavior The Commonwealth Bureaucracy. By Gerald E. Caiden. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1967. xvi, 450 pp. $8.50.

This is a study of the national bureaucracy of the Commonwealth of Australia. Caiden

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