The local union revisited: New voices from the front lines

This article revisits the description of local unions published in 1953 by Sayles and Strauss to see if locals in firms now transforming to meet the needs of the current economic environment also are changing in important ways. Locals are increasingly involved in areas of work previously considered the exclusive domain of management. These additional roles and responsibilities have required local leaders to develop new capacities that better fit current institutional needs.