Maximum Leverage: From the Street to the Picket Line

This is the story of the two lives of Phil Cohen. The first is about childhood in the mean streets of New York City and then his early life as a young adult as a gypsy cab driver in neighborhoods too dangerous for regular cabs, and eventually to managing a cheap hotel, where he helps the impoverished residents with law enforcement, health care, and welfare. The second life of Phil Cohen is as a lead organizer for a major trade union, where he defeats union busters, leverages good contracts with hostile employers, and even breaks the Ku Klux Klan’s control of a union local. According to the publisher, “Written as action dramas with engaging character studies, the stories thrust readers into the whirlwind of vicious labor disputes while providing an audience-friendly understanding of labor law and asymmetric organizing tactics.”