The Great Stewardess Rebellion

How Women Launched a Workplace Revolution at 30,000 Feet

The Great Stewardess Rebellion
Nell McShane Wulfhart
RRP:
NZ$ 55.00
Our Price:
NZ$ 44.00
Hardback
h235 x 156mm - 288pg
19 Apr 2022 US
International import eta 7-19 days
9780385546454
Out Of Stock
Currently no stock in-store, stock is sourced to your order
The empowering story of a group of spirited stewardesses who fought for their rights in the cabin and revolutionized the workplace for all American women. It was the Golden Age of Travel, and everyone wanted in. As flying boomed in the 1960s, women from across the United States applied for jobs as stewardesses. They were drawn to the promise of glamorous jet-setting, the chance to see the world, and an alternative to traditional occupations like homemaking, nursing, and teaching. But as the number of "stews" grew, so did their suspicion that the job was not as picture-perfect as the ads would have them believe. "Sky girls" had to adhere to strict weight limits at all times; gain a few extra pounds and they' d be suspended from work. They couldn' t marry or have children; their makeup, hair, and teeth had to be just so. Girdles were mandatory while stewardesses were on the clock. And, most important, stewardesses had to resign at 32. Eventually the stewardesses began to push back and it' s thanks to their trailblazing efforts in part that working women have gotten closer to workplace equality today. Nell McShane Wulfhart crafts a rousing narrative of female empowerment, the paradigm-shifting ' 60s and ' 70s, the labor movement, and the cadre of gutsy women who fought for their rights-and won.
"I' ve spent so much of my life on the road that stewardesses have always been my friends in the sky. Now I am glad to see The Great Stewardess Rebellion, . . . the true story of women who stood up to huge corporations and won, creating momentous change for all working women. " --Gloria Steinem "The Great Stewardess Rebellion has it all: ' 60s glam, sharp and brave heroines, and one of the most dramatic and consequential feminist battles in American history. A grippingly told and unforgettable story. " --Abbott Kahler, author of The Ghosts of Eden Park "Vivid, inspiring and full of twists, The Great Stewardess Rebellion reveals how a pair of young women helped build a mighty union and transformed an industry forever. Wulfhart has unearthed a story of rare power, and she tells it with passion and skill. " --Jason Fagone, author of The Woman Who Smashed Codes " Wulfhart' s lively labor history chronicles a recent past that can feel simultaneously a million miles away and all too contemporary. " --Rebecca Traister, author of Good and Mad " Nell McShane Wulfhart reconstructs the long-lost Era of the Stewardess: what she meant to the airlines, how she defined the female ideal in America, and then how she broke the mold-and helped change the world for everyone on the ground. " --Keith O' Brien, author of Fly Girls "The Great Stewardess Rebellion should be required reading for anyone entering the modern job market--to remind them how the workplace used to be, and to honor the heroic people who stepped up and made progress possible. A fascinating, important read. " --Lisa Napoli, author of Susan, Linda, Nina & Cokie "Interweaves [personal stories] with a larger narrative of how female flight attendants struggled to build long-term careers built on benefits and good wages rather than the promise of glamour and adventure. . . This engaging narrative offers a fascinating look at how the intersection of the women' s and labor movements helped a little-discussed, female-dominated profession achieve viability and respect. An informatively readable combination of cultural and feminist history. " --Kirkus "Put aside any preconceived notions you might have about flight attendants. Wulfhart' s uniformed women battled the airlines' sexist policies and lurid advertising, forging a feminist revolution along the way. " --Paulina Bren, author of The Barbizon "An entertaining page turner and a powerful story of personal and political transformation. " --Lynn Povich, author of The Good Girls Revolt "A riveting, tour de force story of women' s fight for justice on the job. Wulfhart tells an incredible story of workplace justice and the women who made it. " --Erik Loomis, author of A History of America in Ten Strikes "I' m so grateful for Nell McShane Wulfhart' s work. She' s told an extraordinary herstory--I was in tears. The Great Stewardess Rebellion tells the powerful history of Flight Attendants at American Airlines refusing to allow men to define them. Instead, Flight Attendants set the agenda, helping to turn a job into a career and a union of mostly women into a powerful force that broke through discrimination and sexism to define their worth themselves. This book sets the scene for the possibility of Flight Attendants uniting to lead all working people - no matter who you love or where you come from, every gender, race, culture, and creed - to redefine the value of work and the centrality of unions in a thriving democracy. " --Sara Nelson, International President, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO "Nell McShane Wulfhart brings us face to face with the atrocious status quo that stewardesses fought to overturn. Wulfhart chronicles the movement' s expansion in sparkling detail and delivers uncommon insight into the personal dynamics of social movements. Read this book!" --Priscilla Murolo, co-author of From the Folks Who Brought You the Weekend
NELL MCSHANE WULFHART is a frequent contributor to the New York Times travel section and wrote the column "Carry On" from 2016-2019. She has written for Travel + Leisure, Bon Appetit, Conde Nast Traveler, The Wall Street Journal Magazine, and T Magazine. She is the author of the Audible Original Off Menu.
Status: Indent title, imported to order
ISBN-13: 9780385546454
Published: 19 Apr 2022
Published In: United States
Imprint: Doubleday & Co Inc
Publisher: Random House USA Inc
Format: Hardback
Height: 235mm
Width: 156mm
Pages: 288

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