“Chains of Command masterfully tells the story of how franchising as a business model has become so ubiquitous since the 1960s, and how that model has eroded protections for workers and disempowered many franchisees. Callaci brings this story to life, providing an easily accessible and massively important account of how franchising business contracts have empowered franchisor-owners at the expense of franchisees and workers at a dramatic—and devastating—scale.”

Laura Phillips-Sawyer | author of "American Fair Trade: Proprietary Capitalism, Corporatism, and the 'New Competition,' 1890–1940"

“Callaci provides a riveting account of the rise of modern franchising. By comprehensively charting the International Franchising Association’s political rise and its role in shaping the legal framework of franchising, he explains the ability of franchisors to control most aspects of franchisee operations while avoiding responsibility for their negative effects on workers. His account deftly explains the consequent challenges facing both franchisees and their workers.”

David Weil | author of "The Fissured Workplace: Why Work Became So Bad for So Many and What Can Be Done to Improve It"

“Callaci’s superb analysis of how diabolically clever franchisors created a fast-food dystopia will make you think twice the next time you order a Big Mac or nibble on a cruller. He gets inside the corporate mindset to show how these giant companies used the media, courts, legislatures, and government regulatory agencies to win control of their workers without taking legal, financial, or moral responsibility for the resultant exploitation.”

Nelson Lichtenstein | author of "Why Labor Unions Matter"