Labor leaders discuss careers with students at ILR round-table event

By Linda Myers

About 95 Cornell students from nearly every college discussed potential careers in labor with high-level leaders in the American labor and social justice movements, Nov. 21, as part of the First Annual Labor Roundtable at Cornell.

Mary Joyce Carlson, special counsel to the health-care division of the Service Employees International Union, speaks with students during the ILR School's Labor Roundtable, Nov. 21, in Statler Hotel. Nicola Kountoupes/University Photography

The event took place in the Statler Hotel's Ballroom B, with different groupings of students seated at round tables, while labor leaders rotated from table to table over six timed sessions. Hosted by the School of Industrial and Labor Relations and organized by ILR students and staff, the event created a forum for all Cornell students to learn more about such areas of specialization as labor organizing, labor-related research, policy advocacy, labor law and union administration.

ILR Dean Edward Lawler, who introduced the event, called the gathering of labor leaders and students "impressive" and remarked on the "broad spectrum of labor groups" involved.

Regina Duffey Moravek, director of ILR Career Services, described the round-table event as "a unique opportunity for students to sit across from and engage with leaders in the labor movement, allowing them to make informed career choices."

And Kate Bronfenbrenner, director of labor education research at the ILR School, said: "Never before have students had the opportunity to meet such a diverse mix of leaders from across the labor movement and the nation."

Not only were there representatives from unions as varied as Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (HERE) and the National Football League (NFL) Players Association, noted Bronfenbrenner, but most organizations sent their top-ranking officials.

While weakened labor laws have left many workers vulnerable and fearful that if they speak out against workplace injustices they risk losing their jobs, "The best way to combat workers' feeling of isolation is to make alliances, to ask your mayor or your city council to speak out [for workers' rights]," said Ken Zinn, director of strategic research for the AFL-CIO, in an address to the entire group.

"Low wages to immigrant groups depress all workers' wages," said Yanira Merino, immigration coordinator with LIUNA (Laborers International Union of North America).

And Joe Drexler, director of corporate affairs with PACE (Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers international), invited the students to join the labor movement "if you want to add meaning to your lives, to say, 'I made a difference.'"

During the round-table discussions, students' questions ranged from what a labor organizer's typical day was like, to problems raised when two unions with different constituencies merge. to the role of labor movements in bringing about political change.

"It was the best event I've been to here," said Jenna Velella, a senior in the ILR School interested in socio-economic issues, labor law and public policy. "The contact was unparalleled and invaluable. We got to talk directly to the sources, the people whose work we're interested in."

In addition to Zinn, Merino and Drexler, the attendees, their titles and the groups they represented were as follows: Flora Stamatiades, organizing director, Actors Equity; Pat Friend, president, AFA (Association of Flight Attendants); Jon Hiatt, general counsel, AFL-CIO; Paul Cole, secretary/treasurer, and Colleen Gardner, director of organizing, New York State AFL-CIO; Paul Booth, executive assistant to president, AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees); Christine Ahn, program coordinator, Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy; Neal Kwatra, senior research analyst, HERE; Clay Walker, senior vice president, NFL Players Association Inc.; Mary Joyce Carlson, special counsel to healthcare division, and Michelle Healy, director of WAVE Program, SEIU (Service Employees International Union); Claire Urban, research analyst, UNITE; and Paul Whitehead, general counsel, USWA (United Steel Workers of America).