Francis Ryan

Francis Ryan has taught labor history and industrial relations since 1997. He teaches introductory courses in labor studies, the development of the U.S. labor movement, and graduate courses in public sector employment issues and practices.

Francis Ryan's scholarship addresses unionization in the public sector and retail industries, and twentieth century working class politics. His book, AFSCME's Philadelphia Story: Municipal Workers and Urban Power in the Twentieth Century, was published by Temple University Press in 2011. He is the editor of The Memoirs of Wendell W. Young III: A Life in Philadelphia Labor and Politics (Temple University Press, 2019).

Watch Francis Ryan's interview with Rosemary Connors on NBC10 @ ISSUE about the life and legacy of Philly union leader Wendell W. Young III--including his classic battles with Mayor Frank Rizzo.