Secrets of a Successful Organizer
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Take a sneak peek at some of the secrets inside the book: Secret #2: Apathy Isn’t Real; Secret #3: Aim for the Bullseye ; Secret #5: Don’t Be a Hero.
We’ve made all of the handouts from the book available for free download, in a letter-sized format that’s easy to print and share. All the exercises are included too. Get them here.
Labor Notes offers workshops based on Secrets of a Successful Organizer. This three-part training covers the basics of organizing your workplace. Learn more.
Each lesson includes an exercise or two to help you apply what you’ve learned in your own workplace. These work best as group activities, so download, share and start organizing! Get the exercises here.
Want to find out what the book is all about before you buy it? Sign up for our free e-mail course that will show you how to fight back where you work and win. Learn more.
Buying for your whole study group or steward conference? Bulk discounts are applied automatically when you add the books to your shopping cart:
5-10 copies = 10 percent off
11-50 copies = 25 percent off
51 copies and up = 40 percent off
"Labor Notes has a winner again! Their newest book, Secrets of a Successful Organizer, is so well-written and the information is so comprehensive that any novice or expert will learn how to be a great organizer. It’s a great tool for training leaders. By using real-life examples with stories from real workers, you can see right away how the process can be applied at every workplace, from hospitals to fast food restaurants to factories. If the whole labor movement used this model, unions would be growing rather than declining."
—Patricia Eakin, RN, President, Pennsylvania Association for Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals
"This is an excellent book for anyone in the labor movement. I see this as a 'guide' that is not meant to be read once and put down. This is a comprehensive text that should be studied and applied by anyone involved in the labor movement. As a leader it brings me back to the basics of unionism and organizing within our union. I will recommend this to all my stewards and I plan on using some of the exercises within our trainings. Definitely a must-read for everyone who is actively organizing and representing union members, but also for those who are trying to unionize!"
—Mack Julion, President, National Association of Letter Carriers Branch 11
MORE PRAISE FOR SECRETS OF A SUCCESSFUL ORGANIZER:
"As with the Troublemaker's Handbook, Secrets of a Successful Organizer offers us a broad range of experience from throughout our movement of how to move members to act. The book itself is a well-organized tour through the life of an organizer. It’s a step-at-a-time manual to build the collective spirit, harness power, and make the world a better place."
—Larry Hanley, President, Amalgamated Transit Union
"Secrets of a Successful Organizer is an invaluable tool for shop floor activists. It shows how to work together to empower the rank and file and create real union power in the workplace, and it points out many less-than-obvious pitfalls that should be avoided. It’s a powerful antidote to today’s anti-union environment."
—Donna Cartwright, retired Co-President, Pride at Work, AFL-CIO
"Secrets of a Successful Organizer is not only a must-read book, but an invaluable resource if you and your co-workers want to build power at work. Whereas most books are written for you to read, Secrets of a Successful Organizer is written for you and your co-workers to take massive action in your workplace. So enjoy the read and the ride."
—Asar Amen-Ra, Chrysler logistical warehouse worker, United Auto Workers Local 1248
"No matter where you work, or what union you’re in, Secrets of a Successful Organizer will help you get organized. This book is full of so many creative examples and powerful rank-and-file stories it makes you want to dive right in. As a teacher, I really love the exercises at the end of each lesson, and I’ve already started using some of the handouts!"
—Gwen Sullivan, President, Portland Association of Teachers
"I expect Secrets of a Successful Organizer will quickly become a go-to book for new and experienced organizers. It’s a great tool, combining the underlying principles that guide successful organizing campaigns with concrete examples of tactics that work. It’s also a good read, with lots of inspiring stories that remind us that good organizing brings out the best in people."
—Pam Galpern, Verizon field technician, CWA Local 1101
"This book should come with a complimentary Post-It pad because you will need it to mark the pages you can use! Building rank-and-file power is tremendously challenging and there is no exact blueprint. What Secrets of a Successful Organizer does is provide real-life examples and time-honored gems that assist, encourage, and support us as we challenge others to take up the struggle, not behind us, not beneath us, but alongside us."
—Judy Sheridan-Gonzalez, RN, President, New York State Nurses Association
"Secrets of a Successful Organizer is a wonderful book for any worker that hopes to build power and win respect in their workplace. It focuses on building power through solidarity with concrete examples. Examples, with a little imagination, can be adapted to be applicable in a wide variety of workplaces where workers desire more respect and dignity on the job. The book also contains exercises and can be used as a teaching manual. One of the most powerful lessons is the recognition that, while grievances are important, they are not enough. Grievance procedures tend to delay and isolate the workers and workplace problems. Solidarity actions to solve problems should come first and be coupled to the grievance procedure whenever possible."
—Scott Houldieson, Vice President, United Auto Workers Local 551
"This is a great read and reference for workplace organizers—primarily mobilization at a union workplace, but many of the strategies would work without a union as well. For many working women and men in the U.S. the bridge from a union to a non-union workplace is more like a tightrope, so this is not a manual for how to organize a union. Many of the tools are the same—building unity across racial, occupational, or other divides, mapping out the workplace and building lists, and organizing around issues. In years of mobilizing training at CWA, we learned that education of mobilizers or stewards was critical to successful action. This publication is a great asset in the educational process."
—Larry Cohen, past President, Communications Workers of America
How to Jump-Start Your Union
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Get a sneak peek at how the Chicago teachers prepared for a strike. Read an excerpt from Chapter 8 - Contract Campaign.
Labor Notes offers workshops based on How to Jump-Start Your Union. Check out events coming to your area, or contact us to plan a training for your local.
Interested in buying How to Jump-Start Your Union for your whole study group or steward training conference? Big discounts are available. Learn more.
“How to Jump-Start Your Union should be a beacon to all rank-and-file members on how to bring democracy to their locals. It’s a toolkit that shows how good old-fashioned hard work and faith in the membership can empower every frontline worker.”
—KAREN LEWIS, former President, Chicago Teachers Union
“Labor Notes has done it again! Every unionist should read this book that chronicles how the new leaders of the Chicago Teachers Union organized their members, built strong support with the community, and waged a strike against formidable adversaries. But this book is more—it’s a manual on how all unions can revamp to win justice, with lessons that every union can apply to their own situation.”
—STEVEN ASHBY, Professor of Labor Relations University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
“This play-by-play account of one of the most successful strikes in modern U.S. history documents what it takes to level the playing field against corporate masters and politicians. The lessons put forth by Labor Notes should serve as ‘common core standards’ for unionists who seek to re-energize their own organizations.”
—ED SADLOWSKI, JR., Milwaukee Teachers Education Association, Wisconsin
“The power of public sector unionism stems from our ability to be the voice that advocates directly both for democracy and for the consumers of services. In this book we learn how grassroots organizers used this singular role to revolutionize their own union.”
—HETTY ROSENSTEIN, New Jersey State Director, Communications Workers
Just Cause
Go Further
Buying for your whole study group or steward conference? Bulk discounts are applied automatically when you add the books to your shopping cart:
25-49 copies = 10 percent off
50-99 copies = 15 percent off
100-249 copies = 20 percent off
250+ copies = 25 percent off
“An instant labor classic—Just Cause belongs in every steward’s toolbox.”
—LARRY HANLEY, International President, Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU)
"In Just Cause, Robert Schwartz has set out to help stewards and union advocates successfully challenge workplace penalties assessed under negotiated disciplinary procedures. He does so in the direct and accessible style that characterizes all his handbooks. As such, it is a welcome addition to the literature written for grievance advocates."
—ROBERT WECHSLER, Labor Studies Journal
"I have every book by Robert Schwartz. Every shop steward needs these books in their daily fight for justice on the shop floor!"
—ANDY WOOD, District 2 Committee person, UAW Local 5285
How to Strike and Win: A Labor Notes Guide
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Labor Notes offers workshops based on How to Strike and Win.
Check out events coming to your area, or contact us to plan a training for your local.
How to Build a Union Reform Caucus
Running for Local Union Office
“I ran for office because I believe member involvement makes a strong union. Unions need local officers who are committed to empowering the membership. Since we won, we’ve won strikes, implemented coordinated bargaining, ended bargaining blackouts, increased training, organized contract campaigns, and more. If you’re thinking about running for local union office, this book is the place to start."
—DUSTIN ROACH, President, Teamsters Local 135
Keep Going: A Guide to Organizing When It's Hard
“Against the seemingly limitless power of corporations and billionaires, and the cruelty of a government turning against its own people, there are workers everywhere standing up and fighting back. I’ve known Ellen David Friedman for many years. She knows what it takes to organize and give people real hope. This book contains that experience and helps anyone who is building power in the workplace—step by step, facing endless challenges—to keep going.”
—SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS
“Ellen David Friedman has gifted us all with this essential book on organizing! We’ve all been there: hit with obstacles that seem insurmountable. This text gets right to the point about what it will take to shift our mindsets and the culture of oppressive systems. Every element is taken from stories in the field, with lessons to help us all. Our rank-and-file caucus cannot wait to begin our book group!”
—JIA LEE, United Federation of Teachers, MORE caucus, New York City
“Each page will help you gain and build momentum when you feel stuck. It’s easy to get frustrated, to complain or take a step back. But this book equips you to lean into problems and push through, keeping an eye on the horizon. Every real-world story delivers an organizing principle that will help you build collective power with your colleagues and create a democratic union along the way.”
—JON SCHLEUSS, President, The NewsGuild-CWA
“Keep Going captures the need for humility in organizing, especially when things get hard. Through storytelling, Ellen shares organizing lessons that respond to common organizing questions and challenges, and that provoke thought about the processes of organizing often taken for granted or forgotten.”
—DIAMONTÉ BROWN, President, Baltimore Teachers Union
“In this era of oligarchy, workers are up against great odds, and their best hope lies in their ability to organize. Ellen David Friedman’s book faces the harsh challenges of organizing, and offers not only concrete guidance but also examples of success. It is based on real experience and provides wonderful guidance.”
—LARRY COHEN, President (2005-2015), Communications Workers of America
“While many organizing books focus narrowly on techniques, Keep Going hits on key fundamentals, putting questions of union democracy and power front and center. It combines practical advice with fundamental insights on organizing.”
—JOE BURNS, labor attorney/negotiator and author of Class Struggle Unionism
“Unions are more admired than they have been in a half century. Maybe it’s because of people like Ellen David Friedman, who are rebuilding unions that are democratic, led by rank-and-file members, and fearlessly committed to winning what workers need. That vision, lost in too many unions, is irresistible—to workers inside unions, and to those not yet organized. Ellen was advising us from the start of our decade-long transformation of the Massachusetts Teachers Association into a fighting union. If your union is breaking your heart, or you are at the start of building the union you deserve, or like all of us, you’re figuring out how to overcome the latest outrage by your boss, read this book and you’ll gain new inspiration to Keep Going.”
—MAX PAGE, President, Massachusetts Teachers Association
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The Union Steward's Complete Guide 3rd Edition
"In this era of increased challenges for the labor movement, the new edition of The Union Steward's Complete Guide provides the kind of heavy weaponry that's needed if the good guys are going to win the war. If you don't have it, get it."
—Robert Schwartz, author, The Legal Rights of Union Stewards
"What I like best about The Union Steward's Complete Guide is its holistic approach to the steward's job, from grievances, to member mobilization, to surviving the whiners. It's full of good advice and real experiences, and it's a very usable reference for day-to-day problems."
—Judy Ancel, labor educator
Secrets of a Successful Organizer: Trainer's Guide
Go Further
You can get up to 40 percent off for bulk purchases! See our bulk discount rates here
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