Class Struggles and the Reinvention of American Capitalism in the Second Half of the Twentieth Century

American capitalism has changed dramatically in the last fifty years. During the 1950s, one of its principal characteristics was a capital-labor accord with workers in major industries receiving many benefits in exchange for ceding management broad rights. From 1970 to 2000, by contrast, struggles between labor and capital intensified, with capital gaining overwhelming strength. This article examines some of the principal factors involved in this process, which played a major role in the transformation of American capitalism.