Railway workers were a uniformed and respectable section of the British working class. They built their trade unions in the face of employer hostility, and their organisations played a crucial role in the construction of effective labour politics.
Respectable Radicals uses rich archival sources to analyse this history through a series of case studies.
This penetrating study is essential reading for all academics interested in the history of transport and labour relations and for all railway enthusiasts.
Using primarily archival sources, Howell (history, U. of York) analyzes the history of the powerful and influential labor movement among British railway workers through a series of case studies. One of his main themes is the complex relationship between changing experiences of work, shifting trade union strategies, and political identities. He focuses on disasters, strikes, the modernization policies of companies, inter-union rivalries, and the promises and frustrations of labor politics from the 1890s to the 1950s. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
