Labor's Youth Brigade: What Can the Organizing Institute and Its Graduates Tell Us About the Future of Organized Labor?

This paper utilizes archival research, in-depth interviews and participant observation to analyze the founding and organizational history of the AFL-CIO Organizing Institute. The author argues that the particular way in which the institution was founded, the conflicting goals and mission of its early supporters, and generational and ideological clashes between Institute graduates and the larger labor movement have created conflict and, in some cases, undermined the Institute's founding goals. Additionally, the unresolved nature of these debates—as well as the larger debate regarding commitment to organizing among Institute affiliates and the AFL-CIO—may undercut organizer success in the field and contribute to a high level of turnover among Institute graduates.