# Inflatable rat
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{{Short description|Oversized inflatable figure of a rat, often used for labor protests}}
[[Image:Union-rat.jpg|thumb|Inflatable rat in [Long Island City](/source/Long_Island_City)]]
'''Scabby the Rat''', otherwise known as '''inflatable rats''' or '''union rats''', is a series of giant [inflatables](/source/Inflatable) in the shape of cartoon [rat](/source/rat)s, commonly used in the [United States](/source/United_States) by protesting or [striking](/source/Strike_action) [trade union](/source/trade_union)s. They serve as a sign of opposition against employers or nonunion contractors and are intended to call public attention to companies employing nonunion labor or engaging in [union-busting](/source/Union_busting) activities.
==History==
The first known inflatable rat was used by the [International Union of Operating Engineers](/source/International_Union_of_Operating_Engineers) Local 150 in [Plainfield, Illinois](/source/Plainfield%2C_Illinois) in 1989, according to photos from the ''Local 150 Engineer'' in November 1989, which also launched a "Name the Rat" contest.[{{cite web |url=http://local150.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/scabby1.jpg |title=Local 150 Engineer |date=November 1989 |access-date=January 12, 2019}}] In January 1990, it announced that "Scabby" was the winning submission, in reference to the slang "scab" for [strikebreaker](/source/strikebreaker)s and non-striking workers, coming from Local 150 member Lou Mahieu.[{{cite web |title=Name the Local #150 Rat Contest |url=http://local150.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/scabby2.jpg |access-date=January 12, 2019}}] An alternative origin story credits the [International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers](/source/International_Union_of_Bricklayers_and_Allied_Craftworkers) who credit Ken Lambert with the design in 1990 or 1991, a member of the Chicago District Council, and claim to still have the original model in their Chicago office storage.[{{Cite news |date=2023-03-09 |title=Scabby the Rat is an American labor icon. Why are his manufacturers disowning him? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/08/scabby-rat-union-labor-dispute-inflatable |access-date=2024-12-26 |work=[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian) |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}]
left|thumb|Announcement of Scabby the Rat naming
contest in the ''Local 150'' newsletter, January 1990
The inflatable rats all originated from one American manufacturer, a company called Big Sky, who produced [hot air balloon](/source/hot_air_balloon)s and standalone [inflatable](/source/inflatable)s. It was commissioned by Lambert and designed by one of the co-owners, who Lambert asked to make the design to be "'meaner looking,' with big claws and 'festering nipples,'" with "menacing" fingers and whiskers and "more scabrous" belly.[{{cite news |last=Green |first=Max |date=April 19, 2017 |title=How a Rat Balloon from Suburban Chicago Became a Union Mascot |url=https://www.wbez.org/shows/curious-city/how-a-rat-balloon-from-suburban-chicago-became-a-union-mascot/8526eeb4-4cee-4efd-99e7-b3a794c8e4cc |access-date=January 23, 2019 |work=[WBEZ](/source/WBEZ)}}][{{cite news |last=Channick |first=Robert |date=August 7, 2019 |title=Born in Chicago, Scabby the Giant Inflatable Protest Rat May Be Banned from Picket Lines by New Labor Board Rulings |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-scabby-giant-rat-balloon-union-protest-ban-20190807-fbqnn7rorne75oc2w72wel3ise-story.html |access-date=August 7, 2019 |work=[Chicago Tribune](/source/Chicago_Tribune)}}][{{cite web |first=Debbie-Marie |last=Brown |date=October 18, 2023 |url=https://chicagoreader.com/news-politics/scabby-the-rat/ |title=For Decades, Scabby the Rat Has Stood for Workers' Rights |work=Chicago Reader |access-date=October 27, 2023}}] In part as a result of increasing business from unions, Big Sky’s sales doubled between 1990 and 1991, and developed other "union inflatables," such as a cockroach, a "Corporate [Fat Cat](/source/Fat_cat)", a "Greedy Pig". It was estimated that Big Sky at one point sold a half-dozen Scabbies per month at a price of up to $10,000 each.[{{cite web |url=https://www.natlawreview.com/article/obama-board-and-giant-rat-nlrb-holds-union-use-inflatable-monster-rat-does-not-constitute--0 |title=The Obama Board and the Giant Rat: NLRB Holds That Union Use of Inflatable Monster Rat Does Not Constitute Unlawful Activity Directed At A Secondary Employer |publisher=[The National Law Review](/source/The_National_Law_Review) |date=May 28, 2011 |access-date=January 12, 2019}}][{{Cite web|url=https://www.nlrb.gov/news-outreach/news-story/after-remand-us-appeals-court-nlrb-rules-display-inflatable-rat-balloon|title=After remand by US appeals court, NLRB rules that display of inflatable rat balloon at secondary employer is permitted under labor laws {{!}} NLRB {{!}} Public Website|website=www.nlrb.gov|language=en|access-date=2019-09-06|archive-date=2019-09-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906170532/https://www.nlrb.gov/news-outreach/news-story/after-remand-us-appeals-court-nlrb-rules-display-inflatable-rat-balloon|url-status=dead}}] In 2011 National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in [Sheet Metal Workers Local](/source/Sheet_Metal_Workers'_International_Association) 15, 356 NLRB No. 162 (2011) ruled that the inflatable rat did not constitute a signal picket but instead constituted [symbolic speech](/source/symbolic_speech), which is not subject to [secondary boycott](/source/secondary_boycott) rules. This holding allows the union not only to place the inflatable rats at neutral entrances but also to place them at locations where the picketed company is absent.[{{cite web |last=Lees |first=Judd H. |title=NLRB Rules Inflatable Rats May No Longer Constitute Signal Pickets |publisher=[The National Law Review](/source/The_National_Law_Review) |url=https://www.natlawreview.com/article/nlrb-rules-inflatable-rats-may-no-longer-constitute-signal-pickets |date=June 11, 2011 |access-date=January 12, 2019}}] In 2017, NLRB general counsel [Peter B. Robb](/source/Peter_B._Robb) filed court motions seeking to change the previous policy, arguing that the presence of the inflatable rat was "confrontational, threatening, and coercive."[{{Cite news |last=Lasswell |first=Mark |date=September 6, 2019 |title=Opinions: Justice for Scabby the Rat |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/unions-have-suffered-enough-leave-scabby-the-rat-alone/2019/09/06/40081276-cff6-11e9-87fa-8501a456c003_story.html |access-date=6 September 2019 |newspaper=[The Washington Post](/source/The_Washington_Post)}}][{{cite news |last=Gold |first=Michael |date=July 31, 2019 |title=Scabby, the Giant Inflatable Union Protest Rat, Faces Extermination |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/31/nyregion/rat-balloon-union.html |access-date=September 7, 2019 |work=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)}}] Robb's complaint was set aside by a 3–1 vote of the NLRB on July 21, 2021.[{{Cite web |author=Iafolla, Robert |date=July 21, 2021 |title=Scabby the Rat Can Join Union Protesters, Divided NLRB Says |url=https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/scabby-the-rat-can-join-union-protesters-divided-nlrb-says |access-date=July 22, 2021 |website=[Bloomberg Law](/source/Bloomberg_Law)}}][{{cite news |last=Channick |first=Robert |date=July 21, 2021 |title=Scabby, the Chicago-Born Giant Inflatable Protest Rat, Spared by National Labor Relations Board |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-scabby-giant-union-protest-rat-spared-20210721-773lczp27nhnrlqo5k6yrfxwbe-story.html |access-date=July 23, 2021 |work=[Chicago Tribune](/source/Chicago_Tribune)}}]
The inflatable rat appeared in the UK for the first time in 2012[{{cite web |last=Taylor |first=Matthew |date=February 16, 2012 |title=Electricians and construction workers block Park Lane in protest over pay |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/feb/16/pay-protest-workers-block-park-lane |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221030221648/https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/feb/16/pay-protest-workers-block-park-lane |archive-date=October 30, 2022 |access-date=October 30, 2022 |publisher=[Guardian News](/source/Guardian_News)}}] and again at the [2013 Grangemouth Oil Refinery dispute](/source/Grangemouth_Refinery).[{{cite web |last=Lezard |first=Tim |date=November 18, 2013 |title=Unions smell a rat over government's Grangemouth enquiry |url=http://union-news.co.uk/2013/11/unions-smell-rat-governments-grangemouth-enquiry/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131118205600/http://union-news.co.uk/2013/11/unions-smell-rat-governments-grangemouth-enquiry/ |archive-date=November 18, 2013 |access-date=January 12, 2019 |publisher=Union-News UK}}][[File:Giant-inflatable-rat_crop.jpg|thumb|Inflatable rat in [Cambridge, Massachusetts](/source/Cambridge%2C_Massachusetts)]] It is used by unions also in [Australia](/source/Australia)[Matthew Stevens, [https://www.afr.com/companies/scabby-deflated-by-coal-union-concession-20170807-gxr03n Scabby the Rat deflated by coal union concession], Financial Review, 7 August 2017], [Canada](/source/Canada)[[https://www.ufcw.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33951&Itemid=2673&lang=en Meet Scabby the Rat and Greedy Pig] in UFCW Canada site] and [Israel](/source/Israel)[ניצן צבי כהן,[https://www.davar1.co.il/674213/ "על אף שאת כבר אינך המנכ"לית, את בעלת התפקיד הבכירה בישראל ב-SAP הגלובלית"], Davar, 1 May 2026 (in Hebrew)].
==Appearance==
While the inflatable rat sometimes varies in appearance and size, it generally features large teeth and grotesque features, particularly a scabby belly.[{{cite news |first=Kelly |last=Bauer |date=January 22, 2019 |url=https://blockclubchicago.org/2019/01/22/scabby-the-rat-a-chicago-icon-could-get-outlawed-by-trump-appointee-report/ |title=Scabby the Rat, a Chicago Icon, Could Get Outlawed by Trump Appointee: Report |work=Block Club Chicago |access-date=January 22, 2019}}][{{cite web |last=Jaffe |first=Sarah |author-link=Sarah Jaffe (journalist) |date=March 7, 2013 |title=The History of Scabby the Rat |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-history-of-scabby-the-rat/ |access-date=January 12, 2019 |publisher=[Vice](/source/Vice_(magazine))}}]
{{As of|2003}}, the rats ranged from {{convert|6|to|30|ft|m}} tall, but {{convert|12|ft|m}} is the most popular height due to [local law](/source/local_law)s limiting the height of inflatable objects on display.[{{cite web |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/47805/inflatable-union-rat |title=The Inflatable Union Rat |first=Chuck |last=Salter |date=December 1, 2003 |access-date=January 12, 2019}}]
== Popular culture ==
Scabby had a [cameo appearance](/source/cameo_appearance) in an episode of ''[The Sopranos](/source/The_Sopranos)'' in 2002, acquired through the unionized crew's theatrical [Teamsters Union](/source/International_Brotherhood_of_Teamsters).[{{Cite web |last=Pontone |first=Maya |date=2024-11-14 |title=Scabby the Rat, Icon of Labor Strikes, Gets His Own NYC Show |url=https://hyperallergic.com/966589/scabby-the-rat-icon-of-labor-strikes-gets-his-own-nyc-show/ |access-date=2024-12-26 |website=[Hyperallergic](/source/Hyperallergic) |language=en-US}}]
==Similar actions==
Since August 2017, ''[Trumpy the Rat](/source/Trumpy_the_Rat),'' an inflatable caricature of [Donald Trump](/source/Donald_Trump) as a rat has been used to protest.[{{cite web|last=Voon|first=Claire|url=https://hyperallergic.com/395048/trumpy-the-rat-will-debut-next-week-when-the-president-returns-to-nyc/|title=Trumpy the Rat Will Debut Next Week, When the President Returns to NYC [UPDATED]|work=[Hyperallergic](/source/Hyperallergic)|date=August 9, 2017|access-date=September 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170929100206/https://hyperallergic.com/395048/trumpy-the-rat-will-debut-next-week-when-the-president-returns-to-nyc/|archive-date=September 29, 2017|url-status=live}}]
In October 2018, [Nelson Saiers](/source/Nelson_Saiers) installed a 9-foot inflatable rat covered with [bitcoin](/source/bitcoin) references and code in front of the [Federal Reserve Bank of New York](/source/Federal_Reserve_Bank_of_New_York) as an homage to bitcoin.[{{cite web |last1=Kellner |first1=Kevin |title=Why Someone Put a Giant, Inflatable Bitcoin Rat on Wall Street, Facing the Federal Reserve Bank |url=https://fortune.com/2018/10/12/giant-inflatable-bitcoin-rat-wall-street-facing-feds-building/ |website=Fortune}}][{{cite web |last1=Kariff |first1=Olga |title='I Didn't Sleep Well Last Night:' Analysts Predict Bitcoin Has Further to Fall |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-16/crypto-winter-comes-early-as-bitcoin-slide-spurs-viability-fears?embedded-checkout=true&sref=qz5yRCjC |website=Bloomberg}}] In September 2024, a smaller version of the rat was placed at Sans Souci Cottage on [Jekyll Island](/source/Jekyll_Island), the location of a [1910 meeting](/source/Jekyll_Island_Club) that led to the [creation of the Federal Reserve System](/source/History_of_the_Federal_Reserve_System).[{{cite web |last1=Beganski |first1=André |title=Why a Giant Inflatable Bitcoin Rat Now Stands at the Birthplace of the Fed |url=https://decrypt.co/250075/why-giant-inflatable-bitcoin-rat-stands-birthplace-fedilding/ |website=Decrypt}}]
In 2024, Teamsters in [Rhode Island](/source/Rhode_Island), [Massachusetts](/source/Massachusetts) and [Philadelphia](/source/Philadelphia) brought a giant inflatable [pig](/source/pig) with a [bag of money](/source/Money_bag), [cigar](/source/cigar) and [CEO](/source/Chief_executive_officer) badge to their pickets outside the [Amazon Fulfillment Center](/source/Amazon_(company)).[{{Cite web |date=2024-12-19 |title=Teamsters in Rhode Island and Massachusetts picket during national Amazon strike |url=https://turnto10.com/news/local/teamsters-say-amazon-workers-strike-at-multiple-facilities-dec-19-2024 |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=[WJAR](/source/WJAR) |publisher=[Associated Press](/source/Associated_Press) |language=en}}][{{Cite web |date=2019-10-10 |title=Union protests goPuff with controversial inflatable pig |url=https://www.audacy.com/kywnewsradio/articles/news/union-protests-gopuff-controversial-inflatable-pig |access-date=2024-12-23 |website=www.audacy.com |publisher=[KYW News Radio](/source/KYW_News_Radio) |language=en}}]
In 2025, New York State [Public Employees Federation](/source/Public_Employees_Federation) debuted a giant inflatable [Bull](/source/Bull) (dubbed the Inflate-a-Bull) as part of a campaign to combat workplace bullying.[{{Cite web |date=2025-04-04 |title=Move over Scabby the Rat, the PEF Inflate-a-Bull is coming to a toxic workplace near you! |url=https://x.com/NYSPEF/status/1904987136908214508 |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=[X](/source/Twitter) |publisher=[PEF](/source/Public_Employees_Federation) |language=en}}]
==See also==
* [List of inflatable manufactured goods](/source/List_of_inflatable_manufactured_goods)
* [History of union busting in the United States](/source/History_of_union_busting_in_the_United_States)
* [Anarchist symbolism](/source/Anarchist_symbolism)
* [Labor unions in the United States](/source/Labor_unions_in_the_United_States)
* [Anarcho-syndicalism](/source/Anarcho-syndicalism)
* [Industrial Workers of the World](/source/Industrial_Workers_of_the_World)
* [Diversity of tactics](/source/Diversity_of_tactics)
* [Molly Crabapple](/source/Molly_Crabapple)
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Giant inflatable rat}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Inflatable Rat}}
Category:Mice and rats in popular culture
Rat
Category:Labor relations
Category:Protest tactics
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Inflatable rat](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflatable_rat) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflatable_rat?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.