Big Bill vs. the Brotherhood: NASCAR’s War on Unions

Unlike the NFL, MLB, or even Formula 1, NASCAR has never had a drivers’ union, but not for lack of trying. In the early 1960s, Hall of Famer Curtis Turner joined forces with the Teamsters in a bold push to organize the garage area — a move that got him blacklisted by the sport he helped build. Over the years, similar efforts were quietly floated and just as quickly shut down.

Why has unionization never gained a foothold in stock car racing? What were the drivers asking for — and what is NASCAR so afraid of?

In this episode, we’ll trace the roots of NASCAR’s labor resistance, and unpack how the sport’s Southern identity, family-owned governance, and rapid commercialization combined to make organizing nearly impossible.

This is the story of the union that never was.

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Episode Bibliography: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcB2WLxDdk8

https://www.forbes.com/sites/gregengle/2021/07/24/nascar-reacts-differently-as-talk-of-drivers-organizing-surfaces-once-more/

https://www.nbcsports.com/nascar/news/curtis-turner-from-nascar-banishment-to-celebrated-hall-of-famer 

https://www.goupstate.com/story/news/1998/04/16/rooted-littlejohn-built-spartanburg-heart-stock-racing-34back-those-spartanburg-capital-racing34/29600325007/

https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-columbia-record-speedway-spasm/146339838/

https://www.cottonowens.com/archives/Spartanburg_Racing.php 

https://apnews.com/article/sports-automobile-racing-daytona-beach-500-504f947c60e5d6409910cb15e692cee0 

https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/talladega-1969-when-nascars-star-drivers-boycotted-a-race/

https://teamsters174.net/how-jimmy-hoffa-tried-to-give-unions-the-green-flag-at-nascar/

https://web.archive.org/web/20141216130458/http://speedzone70.tripod.com/VolII.html

https://uniontrack.com/blog/labor-american-south#:~:text=Many%20Southerners%20saw%20industrialization%20and,from%20unionizing%20in%20the%20South.

https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-cup/news/talladega-1969-when-nascars-star-drivers-boycotted-a-race/10660205/#:~:text=Dozens%20of%20drivers%20stood%20up%20against%20NASCAR,but%20it%20didn't%20quite%20stop%20the%20show.&text=Among%20the%20many%20lower%2Dlevel%20drivers%20who%20filled,Fame%20team%20owner%20and%20then%2Ddriver%20Richard%20Childress.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/1130060825/?match=1&terms=%22professional%20drivers%20association%22&_gl=1%2at79p53%2a_up%2aMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAiAqrG9BhAVEiwAaPu5zinarN6sTwRXIAG8BQ7n5kyw7AKyBsnsc1bFahJmRyS6Uh9Oub71ohoCHcgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/936556509/?match=1&terms=%22professional%20drivers%20association%22&_gl=1%2at79p53%2a_up%2aMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAiAqrG9BhAVEiwAaPu5zinarN6sTwRXIAG8BQ7n5kyw7AKyBsnsc1bFahJmRyS6Uh9Oub71ohoCHcgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds 

https://www.newspapers.com/image/915999051/?match=1&terms=%22professional%20drivers%20association%22&_gl=1%2a14h13lc%2a_up%2aMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAiAqrG9BhAVEiwAaPu5zinarN6sTwRXIAG8BQ7n5kyw7AKyBsnsc1bFahJmRyS6Uh9Oub71ohoCHcgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds