abstract: 'Notions of decline dominate scholarship on workers in the contemporary

  U.S. Labor has been pictured as ``flat on its back,{''''} framed by a

  narrative of loss that is linked to the long fall in union density.

  Through a detailed examination of the Fight for \$15 campaign, this

  article challenges this narrative. Launched in 2012, within four years

  the labor-based drive had won over \$68 billion in increased pay,

  helping some 22 million workers. By 2021, eight states plus the District

  of Columbia had pledged to increase their hourly minimum wage to \$15 or

  more, as had numerous cities and leading corporations, including Amazon,

  Target, and Wal-Mart. The \$15 wage had also been awarded to all 390,000

  federal contractors. Moving beyond the emphasis on density, the article

  views Fight for \$15 in the broader context of labor''s advocacy for all

  workers. While often pictured as new, Fight for \$15 drew on long-term

  precedents, including growing income inequality, increasing links

  between unions and community groups, the steady growth of the Service

  Employees International Union - the campaign''s key backer - and

  extensive groundwork by organized labor. Overall, Fight for \$15

  demonstrates that workers still had clout, both at the grassroots and

  national level.'
affiliation: 'Minchin, TJ (Corresponding Author), La Trobe Univ, Hist Program, Melbourne,
  Vic 3086, Australia.

  Minchin, Timothy J., La Trobe Univ, Hist Program, Melbourne, Vic 3086, Australia.'
author: Minchin, Timothy J.
author-email: t.minchin@latrobe.edu.au
author_list:
- family: Minchin
  given: Timothy J.
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1080/0023656X.2022.2045261
earlyaccessdate: FEB 2022
eissn: 1469-9702
files: []
issn: 0023-656X
journal: LABOR HISTORY
keywords: 'Fight for \$15 campaign; contemporary labor; United States; minimum

  wage; trade unions; contemporary'
keywords-plus: MINIMUM-WAGES; EMPLOYMENT
language: English
month: JAN 2
number: '1'
number-of-cited-references: '116'
pages: 37-54
papis_id: 41ee7348b0628ae1c8f46e2bea81d015
ref: Minchin2022definingbattle
times-cited: '0'
title: 'A defining battle: the fight for \$15 campaign and labor advocacy in the U.S'
type: article
unique-id: WOS:000761477800001
usage-count-last-180-days: '2'
usage-count-since-2013: '6'
volume: '63'
web-of-science-categories: History; History Of Social Sciences; Industrial Relations
  \& Labor
year: '2022'