Jimmy Hoffa and Unionism

Hoffa and Unionism

As an organizer for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), Jimmy Hoffa made significant progress toward improved working conditions for truckers and was fore mostly responsible for the rapid progression and development of the union. With over 1.5 million members during Hoffa's tenure as president, IBT eventually became the largest single union in the United States (International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 2012). Through interpretive reactive analysis, topical course comparison, and personal professional experience, this paper will summarize the movie Hoffa and discuss the variance of organizational necessity of the IBT and Hoffa within the context of historical and present day working conditions and the implications thereof.

Motivation for Organization

As depicted in the film, the catalyst which stirred truckers and warehousemen to unionize was due to increased frustration concerning deplorable working conditions such as long hours, minuscule compensation, and absence of properly functioning vehicles to sufficiently complete the responsibilities of the job. Another contributing factor was that workers initially lacked the ability to choose otherwise in the absence of a platform to address concerns associated with unfair labor practices. Although completely disgruntled, workers seemed somewhat enslaved to their circumstance and stuck in the vicious cycle of working extensive hours in attempts to support their families. The level of employee frustration and job discontentment is positively correlated to the probability of unionization as written by Fossum (2012) who reports that "employees are more likely to vote for unions due to dissatisfaction with employment conditions rather than job task characteristics" (p. 9). Unhappy workers are interested in positive change which results in the possibility of improved circumstances. When approached by a sympathizing organizer such as Jimmy Hoffa offering assistance and a means toward significant advancement, workers were desperate to heed and take a chance.

The Goals of Organization

As such is the case with the IBT and Hoffa, advocates of labor unions endeavored to organize as a means to address the unrest and obtain safe working conditions, better wages, and shorter working hours in the day. Specifically, the goal for organizers was to create a united front in order to collectively negotiate toward the established objectives to benefit the working man. LeRoy (1992) reported that the most important factors concerning this movement are associated with collective bargaining rights, union leadership, and union solidarity. Through guidance and union cohesion, Hoffa and IBT gave workers a voice, as written by Fossum (2012), in "how the employment relationship is implemented" (p. 5) in the workplace. Union cohesiveness is an essential requirement of effective organization and successful contract negotiation.

Hoffa and the IBT engaged in questionable activities in attempts to increase membership and strengthen the power of the organization, which ranged from political influence to organized crime. Although the initial motives of organization were honorable, Hoffa and members of the IBT were engaged in widespread corruption, which included bribery, embezzlement, extortion, physical violence, and bombings in order to gain support of the organization. With ties to the mob, the initial labor goals spread to include lucrative pensions, protection of political and civil rights of workers, and the right to hold collective bargaining elections. Due to persistent involvement with the mob and organized crime, Hoffa was eventually convicted of jury tampering, bribery, and fraud in 1964 and sentenced to 13 years in prison, which led to his resignation of IBT office in 1971.

Management Reaction to Organization

Employers did not provide a welcoming response to Hoffa and his organizational efforts. Often times, intimidation tactics such as threats of termination for workers who entertained union ideals were utilized as demonstrated in the scene where Danny DeVito's character was fired after managers learned he engaged in previous conversations with Hoffa. Union organizers were dismissed and union meetings forbidden as indicated by Fossum (2012) who writes that "employers used security forces to police the workforce, forcibly kept out organizers, or ferreted out internal union activists or sympathizers from the late 1800s to World War II" (p. 196).

The fact that many US employers look down on, discourage, and blatantly combat unionization is not a recent occurrence as successful organization thereof can result in decreased profits and inflated personnel costs. Fossum (2012) argues that 'employers have long resisted attempts to unionize" (p. 215) and implemented various strategies to remain union free and greedily persist in their efforts toward heightened profitability through utilization of unfair labor practices.

Lawful Strategies for Union Avoidance

Although Hoffa and the Teamsters faced stark resistance from employers concerning unionization, the resulting creation and evolution of employment legislation has since improved working conditions and impacted the type of strategies implemented by employers to avoid organization. Employers are taking more proactive and less historically barbaric approaches to address employee job satisfaction and union avoidance. Godard and Delaney (2000) argued that traditional collective bargaining agreements among unions have been replaced with innovative high performance work and pay approaches which are implemented and engrained in the organizational culture by management and HR. Increasingly more companies are avoiding unionization through successful implementation of philosophy-laden and progressive policy standardization which enhances employee satisfaction and leads to career development. According to Fossum (2012), philosophy-laden companies are immune to unionization "because their employment practices are more attractive to their employees than those unions typically advocate and are able to negotiate" (p. 201). My professional experience has been that satisfied employees are more motivated and productive, which significantly promotes organizational performance. Pfeffer (1994) reported that successful implementation of HR practices which include high performance work practices and above market compensation also contribute to global competitiveness.

In order to avoid unionization, employers must take a career oriented approach to employment by empowering employees through various strategies such as pay for performance, provision of above market compensation packages, endorsement