The Chrysler Bailout and the Fiat Strike, 1979–1980 Comparing and Reframing Workers’ Defeat in Detroit and Turin

This thesis examines the Chrysler Loan Guarantee Act, or “bailout,” of 1979–1980 in Detroit alongside Turin’s ‘Marcia dei quarantamila’ and the Fiat labor crisis of the same period. While labor movements in the US and Italy responded differently to mass layoffs in the auto industry, both ultimately conceded, securing the best compromises available. Commonly framed as labor defeats, these events instead marked a broader global shift in economic policy and ideology that unions were ill-equipped to resist. By analyzing how historical labor relations in each city shaped their responses, comparing union strategies in confronting the rise of neoliberalism, and assessing transnational influences on these crises, this study situates Detroit and Turin within larger economic transformations. Drawing on literature in multiple disciplines as well as union archives, it argues that the shock of labor’s ‘defeat’ stemmed from a breakdown in communication—both within unions and between labor and the broader public. Ultimately, it highlights how political and economic changes transcended national boundaries to present a nearly insurmountable challenge for unions and workers alike.