THE IL-CHEMICAL-AND-ATOMIC-WORKERS-INTERNATIONAL-UNION - REFINING STRATEGIES FOR LABOR

In a period of declining union membership and severe economic and envi ronmental crisis it is important that labor unions rethink their tradi tional roles and organizational goals. Responding to some of these pro blems and reflecting a history of innovative and progressive unionism, the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Union (OCAW) has sought to addre ss occupational and environmental health problems within the context o f a political struggle. This study suggests that by joining with the e nvironmental movement and community activists, by pursuing a strategy of coalition building, and by developing an initiative to build and ad vocate for a new political party, OCAW provides a model for reinvigora ting trade unionism in the United States.