The Big Rig: Trucking and the Decline of the American Dream

Long-haul trucks have been described as sweatshops on wheels. The typical long-haul trucker works the equivalent of two full-time jobs, often for little more than minimum wage. But it wasn't always this way. Trucking used to be one of the best working-class jobs in the United States.

The Big Rig explains how this massive degradation in the quality of work has occurred, and how companies achieve a compliant and dedicated workforce despite it. Drawing on more than 100 in-depth interviews and years of extensive observation, including six months training and working as a long-haul trucker, Viscelli explains in detail how labor is recruited, trained, and used in the industry. He then shows how inexperienced workers are convinced to lease a truck and to work as independent contractors. He explains how deregulation and collective action by employers transformed trucking's labor markets--once dominated by the largest and most powerful union in US history--into an important example of the costs of contemporary labor markets for workers and the general public.

Author: Steve Viscelli
Publisher: University of California Press
Published: 04/12/2016
Pages: 284
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.84lbs
Size: 8.90h x 5.90w x 0.70d
ISBN13: 9780520278127
ISBN10: 0520278127
BISAC Categories:
- Social Science | Anthropology | Cultural & Social
- Political Science | Labor & Industrial Relations
- Business & Economics | Industries | Transportation

About the Author
Steve Viscelli is a political sociologist and lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also a senior associate at the Center on Wisconsin Strategy. In addition to his academic research, he works with a range of public and private stakeholders to make the trucking industry safer, more efficient, and a better place to work. To learn more, please visit: http: //www.steveviscelli.com/.