For many African Americans, getting a public sector job has historically been one of the few paths to the financial stability of the middle class, and in New York City, few such jobs were as sought-after as positions in the fire department (FDNY). For over a century, generations of Black New Yorkers have fought to gain access to and equal opportunity within the FDNY. Tracing this struggle for jobs and justice from 1898 to the present, David Goldberg details the ways each generation of firefighters confronted overt and institutionalized racism. An important chapter in the histories of both Black social movements and independent workplace organizing, this book demonstrates how Black firefighters in New York helped to create affirmative action from the "bottom up," while simultaneously revealing how white resistance to these efforts shaped white working-class conservatism and myths of American meritocracy. Full of colorful characters and rousing stories drawn from oral histories, discrimination suits, and the archives of the Vulcan Society (the fraternal society of Black firefighters in New York), this book sheds new light on the impact of Black firefighters in the fight for civil rights.

"This book will be the standard and basic book for generations to come. It will be and is the "sine qua non" for serious scholars in this area."--William Gould, former chairman of the National Labor Relations Board

"Institutional structures matter. Paul Frymer shows how misleading it is to see 'the national government' as an undifferentiated whole. Instead, its division into separate branches, cabinet departments, agencies, and commissions has profound consequences for the actualities of public policy. Frymer offers constant illumination of the consequences for labor unions and racial-justice advocates of this almost 'anarchic' organization, but the basic insights of the book apply even more broadly."--Sanford Levinson, author of "Our Undemocratic Constitution"

"A major book by an important scholar, Paul Frymer's carefully researched and elegantly constructed account of the struggle for racial equality in the American workplace clearly exposes the tensions and contradictions that attended this struggle. It will be widely read and have a substantial impact on the field."--Robert C. Lieberman, Columbia University, author of "Shaping Race Policy"

"Paul Frymer has written a fascinating, provocative, and original contribution to debates on the labor movement and race in the twentieth century. The book covers ground few scholars have dealt with, while also drawing synthetically and fruitfully on a rich literature."--Eric Arnesen, University of Illinois at Chicago

"In this most significant contemporary study of Indonesian trade unions and the broader working class, Max Lane provides a concise and informed examination of the practical and ideological challenges of incipient labour organizations engaged in political and popular struggles in an underdeveloped nation. This detailed and highly informative book evokes similar historical and comparative struggles of exploited workers worldwide and is indispensable for students of labour movements in the Global South." --Immanuel Ness, Professor of Political Science, City University of New York, author of Southern Insurgency: The Coming of the Global Working Class

With the globalization and growth of world economic markets, the importance of a strong workforce has become paramount to business success. Organizations cannot achieve this global reach unless they intend to tackle issues regarding equality in the workplace. In a time when sustainability and corporate responsibility have become the norm, organizations value the creation of an egalitarian workplace. Macro and Micro-Level Issues Surrounding Women in the Workforce: Emerging Research and Opportunities is a critical scholarly resource that voices issues and challenges faced by women and provides guidance for organizations in developing strategic initiatives to involve women in decision-making processes and improve women's wellbeing in the workplace. The book explores macro (socio-economic) and micro-level (organizational) issues in relation to women's positions at work including occupational segregation, gender pay gap, diversity management, and socio-cultural roles attached to women. It is essential for executives, managers, executive board members, human resources professionals, policymakers, business practitioners, academicians, researchers, corporate professionals, and students.