The national trade union is the dominant institution in the American labor movement. In this book the author analyzes its emergence and development in the latter half of the nineteenth and early part of the twentieth centuries. It was during this period that the labor union as a nationwide organization achieved dominance over other labor institutions.

The author discusses first the historical factors affecting trade union development. The body of the book covers the various stages in the evolution of union membership, organization, and government. An integral part of these chapters is a comparison of the national union movement in America and in Great Britain. The book concludes with a presentation of the interrelationships of the unions, and with a discussion of their relations with employers.