Labor Studies Labor Studies focuses on work and workers, both union members and the unorganized, and includes their communities and the organizations that represent them and it does so from the perspectives of such disciplines as economics, history, and political science. Students in this concentration will become familiar with the major issues affecting workers today, such as the impact of technology, economic globalization, and the changing contexts of politics and labor law. They will also examine the intersections of race and gender and the term “workers.” This concentration prepares students for graduate work in labor relations or the social sciences, and for positions such as union organizer, researcher, or education director in labor organizations. Labor Studies also prepares students to work in community organizations, in human resources departments, and in governmental agencies.

Students are encouraged to develop their skills in effective written and oral communications, and to take as many courses as possible in economics, history and political science, social theory and cultural studies.

The following courses are suggested for all students interested in completing a concentration in Labor Studies:

Introduction to Labor Studies
The History of American Labor
Economics of Labor
US Trade Unionism
Comparative Labor Movements
Collective Bargaining and Labor Relations
Workers Rights and the Law
Gender and Globalization
Working New York
New York Labor in the Global Economy
Women and Work
Sociology of Work
Psychology of Work
Labor and Film

Seminar in Labor Studies and Labor Studies Internships and research projects with labor unions. The Seminar in Labor Studies, followed by an internship or research position in a labor union, is an important part of the concentration. The seminar meets weekly in the fall term and the internship in the spring term involves working one day or two evenings per week for a local or national union. Students are supervised by union leaders or staff members and will work in areas such as organizing, education, grievances and arbitration, collective bargaining, research, and occupational health and safety.

Further study in history includes:

The Age of Revolution
Modern Radical Movements

Further study of labor and race, gender, and ethnicity includes:

Women and Work
Hispanics in U.S.-Migration

Further study in other social sciences includes:

Cross-cultural Perspectives Work & Workers
Introduction to Public Policy
Introduction to the Legal Process
Psychology of Work
Behavior in Organizations
Urban Sociology