George Meany and His Times; A Biography

445, [3] pages. Illustrations. Author's Note. Footnotes. Chapter Notes. Bibliography. Index. Signed by author on fep. DJ has wear, tears, soiling, and chips. Minor endpaper soiling. Minor edge soiling. William George Meany (August 16, 1894 - January 10, 1980) was an American labor union leader for 57 years. He was the key figure in the creation of the AFL-CIO and served as the AFL-CIO's first president, from 1955 to 1979. Meany, the son of a union plumber, became a plumber at a young age, as well. He became a full-time union official 12 years later. As an officer of the American Federation of Labor, he represented the AFL on the National War Labor Board during World War II. He served as president of the AFL from 1952 to 1955. He proposed its merger with the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in 1952 and led the negotiations until the merger was completed in 1955. He then served as president of the merged AFL-CIO for the next 24 years. Meany had a reputation for integrity and consistent opposition to corruption in the labor movement, and strong anti-communism. He was the best known union leader in the United States in the mid-20th century Derived from a Kirkus review: The Bronx plumber who rose to labor leadership as a lobbyist/politician has got himself a showcase "authorized" biography--composed largely of excerpts from his interviews and public statements, endorsed and flatteringly framed by labor reporter Robinson. We get a strong sense of where Meany came from: to read him on the philosophy of craft unionism--the pride in hard-acquired skills, the preoccupation with limiting entrance, protecting jurisdictions, maintaining wage-rates--is to understand anew the old AFL/CIO hostility. And there's ample evidence here of Meany's scrappiness and bluntness: he could justifiably say that he wasn't awed by presidents--from FDR to Jimmy Carter. It's Meany's concerns that determine what's in the book: a great deal on the Meany anti-Communist and anti-corruption record. The off-and-on Nixon relationship is more off than on here; we do get considerable detail on Meany vis-a -vis Ford and Carter.…