Overtime Episode 27 - Unions and The Mob: Reputation vs Reality Pt 2 (Patreon)

In the second episode of our new series examining historical allegations of union corruption and relations with organized crime, we discuss the Daniel Tobin era of the Teamsters from the first decade of the 20th century to the end of WW2. In this period, massive technological changes revolutionized the work of Teamsters, shifting from driving teams of horses in busy urban streets to interstate motorized trucking. This period also saw the rise of the mafia during the years of Prohibition. With the ruling class desperate for a scapegoat to blame for the collapse of the economy during the Great Depression, the capitalist press seized on the opportunity to attack the unions, and so they immediately made the association between unions and the mob. In this episode, we discuss both real instances of corrupt union officials working with mobsters, but also heroic struggles by union leaders to fight the mob, some even paying with their lives.

In future episodes, we will discuss the rise of Dave Beck as Teamster President, Congress's attempt to go after unions with the McClellan Committee, and the dawn of the Hoffa Era.