JAMES HOFFA

James Hoffa

[Name of the Institute]

James Hoffa

James Hoffa, commonly known as Jimmy Hoffa was born on February 14, 1913 in Brazil, Indiana, in a humble home. Hoffa's father was a coal worker in Illinois. After the death of his father, Jimmy Young moved to Detroit to work in a warehouse. In that city, capital of the automotive industry, organized the first strike called "swampers" workers loading and unloading. He left school after the ninth grade at the age of fourteen and became a warehouse worker, after several jobs, at the Kroger Food Company. His hourly wage at that time was 0.32 U.S. dollars. James Hoffa began working in 1929, shortly before the Great Depression of the year, as a loader truck from there objected to abuses of various patterns of such business, first at the local level. Hoffa organized a strike; as a result, the Board on the hourly wage increased 45 cents, because otherwise the sensitive commodity fruit (especially strawberries) would be spoiled (Hoffa, 1975).

In 1931, at 18 years old, began his activities as a union leader, achieving in 1933 a legal regulation for the Guild of American truckers, first in the Midwestern states and nationally since 1940, becoming an influential union leader. This was because of his personal charisma and tactics to confront small business against big business in order to weaken the influence of industry and employers and greater benefits for their resources.

However, since 1950, Hoffa was accused of using members of the Mafia as "ancillary" to intimidate small businesses reluctant to negotiate with their union, in exchange for supporting the Mafia in "clean" their illegal earnings using the vast network of services provided by the workers union members (who variables to keep dues-paying membership). This practice was very successful and was then used to push the most ...