Strike Back : Rediscovering Militant Tactics to Fight the Attacks on Public Employee Unions

“There is no collective bargaining without the strike. Joe Burns’ Strike Back helps awaken the labor movement to our collective power. This book belongs in the hands of every unionist who wants to build power for working people through militant grassroots activism." —SARA NELSON, President of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO

During the 1960s and 1970s, teachers, police, firefighters, sanitation workers and many other public employees rose up to demand collective bargaining rights in one of the greatest upsurges in labor history. These workers were able to transform the nature of public employment, winning union recognition for millions and ultimately forcing reluctant politicians to pass laws allowing for collective bargaining and even the right to strike. Strike Back uncovers this history of militancy to provide tactics for a new generation of public employees facing unprecedented attacks on their labor rights.

This newly updated edition discusses many significant recent developments for public employee unions, including the Supreme Court decision in Janus and the 2018 teacher strike wave. Featuring a foreword by Eric Blanc, author of Red State Revolt: The Teachers’ Strike Wave and Working-Class Politics.

Joe Burns is a veteran union negotiator and labor lawyer with over 25 years experience negotiating labor agreements. He is currently the Director of Collective Bargaining for the Association of Flight Attendants--CWA. He graduated from the New York University School of Law. Prior to law school he worked in a public sector hospital and was president of his AFSCME Local. He is the author of Reviving the Strike: How Working People Can Regain Power and Transform America.