Bob Crow was the most high-profile and militant union leader of his generation. This biography focuses on his leadership of the RMT union, examining and exposing a number of popular myths created about him by political opponents. Using the schema of his personal characteristics (including his public persona), his politics and the power of his members, it explains how and why he was able to punch above his weight in industrial relations and on the political stage, helping the small RMT union become as influential as many of its much larger counterparts. As RMT leader, Crow oversaw a rise in membership and promoted a more assertive and successful bargaining approach. While he failed to unite all socialists into one new party, he established himself as the leading popular critic of neo-liberalism, 'New' Labour and the age of austerity.

This is the first biography of Bob Crow, the best-known union leader of his generation. It is a sympathetic but critical account, written from a radical sociological perspective.

In the summer of 2022, the little-known leader of a small union became a ‘working-class hero’. Facing down media pundits who thought they could walk all over him, he offered a robust critique of the government and provided workers with an authentic voice. At a time when the Labour Party was unable to articulate a credible alternative to the Tories, Mick Lynch spoke for the working class. Where did Lynch come from? How did he develop the skills and traits that make him such an effective spokesperson and leader? This book, the first biography of Lynch, explores his family and social background and his rise to the top of the RMT union, which culminated in election as General Secretary in 2021. Considering his persona and politics, this book asks what quality singles out Lynch as a working-class hero compared to other union leaders and, more broadly, what leadership means for working people and for the left. If we want better leaders at every level, the case of Mick Lynch holds the key.

Almost 80 years after Leon Trotsky founded the Fourth International, there are now Trotskyist organizations in 57 countries, including most of Western Europe and Latin America. Yet no Trotskyist group has ever led a revolution or built an enduring mass, political party. Contemporary Trotskyism looks in detail at the influence, resilience and weaknesses of the British Trotskyist movement, from the 1970s to the present day. The book argues that to understand and explain the development, resilience and influence of Trotskyist groups, we need to analyse them as bodies that comprise elements of three types of organization: the political party, the sect and the social movement. It is the properties of these three facets of organization and the interplay between them that gives rise to the most characteristic features of the Trotskyist movement: frenetic activity, rampant divisions, inter-organizational hostility, authoritarian and charismatic leadership, high membership turnover and ideological rigidity. Trotskyist groups have been involved in a wide range of important social movements including trade unions, student unions, anti-war, anti-racist and anti-fascist groups. While their energy and activity in civil society have had some success, their influence has never been reflected in votes or seats at elections even after the financial crisis. Drawing on extensive archival research, as well as interviews with many of the leading protagonists and activists within the Trotskyist milieu, this is essential reading for students, activists and researchers with an interest in the far left, social movements and contemporary British political history.

This book describes and analyses the impact of the 2007-2008 financial crisis upon the working conditions of employees in the financial services sector in Britain. It tells the story of workers being made to pay the price for a crisis that was not of their own making, but nevertheless caused a deleterious impact on their employment security, remuneration and working conditions. Evidence of fighting back against this has been sparse so that the response of employees is best characterised as ‘fright’ (grudgingly working harder and longer), ‘flight’ (leaving the sector through redundancy), and ‘falling in line’ (accepting the diktat of performance managements systems). Through this book we learn the reasons behind this acquiescence, with its detailed attention to topics such as the stunted development of labour unionism, the prevalence of union-management partnerships, and the occurrence of employment insecurity and labour shedding. Providing a valuable insight into the effects of the financial crash, Employment Relations in Financial Services will be useful to academics, students and also trade unionists.

Foreign fighters and returning foreign fighters are among the most important security issues that the Middle East and Europe is facing today. Although this topic has gained more attention in recent years, most of the academic studies on foreign fighters do not focus on the issue of classification. This book is based on a master's thesis and focuses on this somewhat neglected area of research by analyzing the discourse of foreign YPG fighters and finally proposing a classification for foreign YPG fighters based on their narratives. David Malet's PhD dissertation, which categorizes foreign fighters into four different types is particularly important and this study is based on Malet's classification. However, unlike Malet's thesis, this study focuses on one armed organization, the YPG, instead of a general categorization.

The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress. It is published daily when Congress is in session. The Congressional Record began publication in 1873. Debates for sessions prior to 1873 are recorded in The Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the United States (1789-1824), the Register of Debates in Congress (1824-1837), and the Congressional Globe (1833-1873)