This article examines the impact of a Florida health care union’s political activities on broader member “civic engagement.” Its grassroots political approach (membership education, leadership development, mobilizational structures, and capacity) and a broad “public interest” framing of goals has stimulated new forms of civic engagement by its volunteer leaders and members. Alternative explanations of its success in terms of membership demographics and method of conducting political activities is conducted, with the latter providing most of the explanation. This approach to politics is commended to the labor movement at large, both for its effectiveness and its legitimizing role in U.S. public opinion.
American Psychological Association.2009. Civic engagement and service learning. . http://www.apa.org/ed/slce/civicengagement.html.
2.
Arneil, Barbara.2006. Diverse communities: The problem with social capital. New York: Cambridge University Press.
3.
Asher, Herbert B., Eric S. Heberlig, and Karen Snyder.2001. American labor unions in the electoral arena. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
4.
Brecher, Jeremy, and Tim Costello .1998. A "New Labor Movement" in the shell of the old? In A new labor movement for the new century , ed. Gregory Mantsios, 29-50. New York: Garland.
5.
Charles, Jacqueline.2004. Caribbean Democrats start own vote drive. Miami Herald. May 8.
6.
Clawson, Dan.2003. The next upsurge: Labor and the new social movements. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
7.
Cloward, Richard A., and Frances Fox Piven .1989. Poverty and electoral power . Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare16:99-105.
8.
Delaney, John Thomas, Marick F. Masters, and Susan Schwochau .1988. Unionism and voter turnout . Journal of Labor Research9:221-36.
9.
Delaney, John Thomas, Marick F. Masters, and Susan Schwochau .1990. Union membership voting for COPE-endorsed candidates. Industrial and Labor Relations Review43:621-35.
10.
Falson, Anita.2001. Taxpaying immigrants speak out for legalization. Miami Times. September 5-11.
11.
Feldmann, Linda.2004. Months before Nov. 2, state polls show Bush and Kerry neck and neck. Christian Science Monitor. May 24.
12.
Hojnacki, Marie, and Lawrence Baum.1992. New style judicial campaigns and the voters: Economic issues and unions in Ohio. Western Political Quarterly45:921-48.
13.
Jackson, Robert A., Robert D. Brown, and Gerald C. Wright .1998. Registration, turnout, and the electoral representativeness of U.S. state electorates. American Politics Research26:259-87.
14.
Johnston, Paul.2002. Citizenship movement unionism: For the defense of local communities in the Global Age. In Unions in a globalized environment: Changing borders, organizational boundaries, and social roles, ed. Bruce Nissen.Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe Publishers.
15.
Juravich, Tom, and Peter Shergold.1988. The impact of unions on the voting behavior of their members. Industrial and Labor Relations Review41:374-85.
16.
Lijphart, Arend.1997. Unequal participation: Democracy’s unresolved dilemma . American Political Science Review91:1-14.
17.
McLean, Scott, David.A. Schultz, and Manfred. B. Steger, ed. 2002. Social capital: Critical perspectives on community and "Bowling Alone."New York: New York University Press.
18.
Morales, Maria A.1998. Groups: INS raids inhumane. Miami Herald . October 15.
19.
Nissen, Bruce.2000. Living wage campaigns from a "social movement" perspective: The Miami case. Labor Studies Journal25:29-50.
20.
Nissen, Bruce.2003. Alternative strategic directions for the U.S. labor movement: Recent scholarship. Labor Studies Journal28:133-55.
21.
Nissen, Bruce, Cynthia Hernandez, Marcos Feldman, and Yuet Zhang.2009. Transforming lives: The Impact of SEIU Healthcare Florida on its members. Miami, FL: Florida International University Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy of the FIU Center for Labor Research and Studies.
22.
Putnam, Robert D.2000. Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community . New York: Simon and Schuster.
23.
Putnam, Robert D., Lewis Feldstein, and Don Cohen.2003. Better together: Restoring the American community. New York: Simon and Schuster .
24.
Rabin, Charles.2000. Hundreds of Miami Democrats make long trip for protest rally. Miami Herald. December 7.
25.
Radcliff, Benjamin.2001. Organized labor and electoral participation in American national elections. Journal of Labor Research22:405-14.
26.
Radcliff, Benjamin, and Patricia Davis.2000. Labor organization and electoral participation in industrial democracies. American Journal of Political Science44:132-41.
27.
Rapoport, Ronald B., Walter J. Stone, and Alan I. Abramowitz .1991. Do endorsements matter? Group influence in the 1984 Democratic caucuses. American Political Science Review85:193-203.
28.
Robinson, Ian.2002. Does neoliberal restructuring promote social movement unionism? U.S. developments in comparative perspective. In Unions in a globalized environment: Changing borders, organizational boundaries, and social roles, ed. Bruce Nissen.Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe Publishers.
29.
Rodriguez, Ketty.2002. Grupos piden legalizar el status de indocumentados. El Nuevo Herald. May 15.
30.
Sousa, David J.1993. Organized labor in the electorate. Political Research Quarterly46:741-58.
31.
Turner, Lowell, and Richard W. Hurd .2001. Building social movement unionism: The transformation of the American labor movement. In Rekindling the movemente: Labor’ s quest for relevance in the 21st century , ed. Lowell Turner, Harry C. Katz, and Richard W. Hurd.Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
32.
Uhlaner, Carole J.1989. Rational turnout: The neglected role of groups. American Journal of Political Science32:390-422.
33.
Verba, Sidney, and Norman H. Nie .1972. Participation in America: Political democracy and social equality. New York: Harper & Row.
34.
Zullo, Roland.2003. Shaping political preferences through workplace mobilization: Unions and the 2000 election. Advances in Labor and Industrial Relations12:173-96.
35.
Zullo, Roland.2004. Labor council outreach and union member voter turnout: A micro-analysis from the 2000 election. Industrial Relations43:324-38.
