Try free for 30 days

  • Empire's Labor: The Global Army That Supports U.S. Wars

  • By: Adam Moore
  • Narrated by: Gary Roelofs
  • Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins

1 credit a month to use on any title, yours to keep (you’ll use your first credit on this title).
Stream or download thousands of included titles.
Access to exclusive deals and discounts.
$16.45 a month after 30 day trial. Cancel anytime.
Empire's Labor: The Global Army That Supports U.S. Wars cover art

Empire's Labor: The Global Army That Supports U.S. Wars

By: Adam Moore
Narrated by: Gary Roelofs
Try for $0.00

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $27.99

Buy Now for $27.99

Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.

Publisher's Summary

In a dramatic unveiling of the little-known world of contracted military logistics, Adam Moore examines the lives of the global army of laborers who support US overseas wars. Empire's Labor brings us the experience of the hundreds of thousands of men and women who perform jobs such as truck drivers and administrative assistants at bases located in warzones in the Middle East and Africa. He highlights the changes the US military has undergone since the Vietnam War, when the ratio of contractors to uniformed personnel was roughly 1:6. In Afghanistan it has been as high as 4:1. 

Focusing on workers from the Philippines and Bosnia, two major sources of "third country national" (TCN) military labor, Moore explains the rise of large-scale logistics outsourcing since the end of the Cold War; describes the networks, infrastructures, and practices that span the spaces through which people, information, and goods circulate; and reveals the experiences of foreign workers, from the hidden dynamics of labor activism on bases, to the economic and social impacts these jobs have on their families and the communities they hail from.

The book is published by Cornell University Press. The audiobook is published by University Press Audiobooks.

©2019 Cornell University (P)2019 Redwood Audiobooks
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic Reviews

"A beautifully written, essential book exposing the labor and labor exploitation underpinning the military industrial complex, U.S. empire, and the corporations fueling permanent war." (David Vine, author of Base Nation

"Will be a foundational text for understanding contemporary war and providing insight into labor's pushback." (Catherine Lutz, author of Homefront and An Empire of Bases

What listeners say about Empire's Labor: The Global Army That Supports U.S. Wars

Average Customer Ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.