Why Couldn’t John Sweeney’s AFL-CIO Revive US Labor?

Why Couldn’t John Sweeney’s AFL-CIO Revive US Labor?

In 1995, new AFL-CIO director John Sweeney had an ambitious plan to organize millions of new union members. As labor’s fortunes continue to decline 30 years later, understanding what went wrong in the Sweeney years may offer clues as to the path forward. John Sweeney speaking at the Los Angeles Convention Center, October 11, 1999. (Photo by Kim Kulish/Corbis via Getty Images) When I came to the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Indus…