Women have been the mainstay of the grueling; seasonal canning industry for over a century. This book is their collective biography—a history of their family and work lives; and of their union. Out of the labor militancy of the 1930s emerged the United Cannery; Agricultural; Packing; and Allied Workers of America (UCAPAWA). Quickly it became the seventh largest CIO affiliate and a rare success story of women in unions.Thousands of Mexican and Mexican-American women working in canneries in southern California established effective; democratic trade union locals run by local members. These rank-and-file activists skillfully managed union affairs; including negotiating such benefits as maternity leave; company-provided day care; and paid vacations—in some cases better benefits than they enjoy today. But by 1951; UCAPAWA lay in ruins—a victim of red baiting in the McCarthy era and of brutal takeover tactics by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
#2963855 in Books 2017-02-28 2017-02-28Original language:English 9.10 x 1.10 x 6.00l; #File Name: 0824857755256 pages
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