UC Berkeley Labor Center

Women's History Month Profiles: Katie Quan | AFL-CIO For Women's History Month, we're taking a look at a group of leaders who are currently active making women's history across the labor movement. Check back daily for a new profile and meet some of the ...

Women's History Month profile of Katie Quan from @aflcio.org :
aflcio.org/2026/3/8/wom...

Job Opening: Technology and Work Program Director (Full Specialist) The UC Berkeley Labor Center seeks applications for the position of Technology and Work Program Director.

They Labor Center is seeking candidates for the position of Technology and Work Program Director to oversee, develop, and conduct research, policy analysis, and training related to rapid technological change in the workplace. Learn more & spread the word!
laborcenter.berkeley.edu/job-opening-...

How tech workers are speaking up at work and beyond—A worker voice event recap - TechEquity Collaborative Across the country, tech workers are collaborating and speaking up for themselves and our collective well-being. This is what they learned.

Tech workers are speaking up! Lisa Kresge's research found three "main buckets" of provisions in tech-related union contracts: Decision-making power & governance; Worker protections & employer obligations; & Technology itself & how it will be used. Panel discussion: techequity.us/2026/02/24/t...

Worker power starts with building community 💪 YouTube video by TechEquity

In late 2024, @tahlia-k.bsky.social and her coworkers became the first @alphabetworkersunion.org members on the Google Help team to secure a collective bargaining agreement with Google vendor Accenture that includes workplace tech protections.

How did they do it? www.youtube.com/shorts/_lMcd...

How tech workers are speaking up at work and beyond—A worker voice event recap - TechEquity Collaborative Across the country, tech workers are collaborating and speaking up for themselves and our collective well-being. This is what they learned.

Tahlia joined us last month to talk about their journey and give advice to other workers who want to speak up in the workplace.

Find out what she, as well as Lisa Kresge @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social and Varun Iyengar @amzn4climate.bsky.social had to say: techequity.us/2026/02/24/t...

Those out-of-pocket costs do impact people's decisions to get care, so that's worrisome as well. Miranda Dietz, Health Care Program Director, UC Berkeley Labor Center.

Miranda Dietz @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social explains why it's a problem that 1 in 3 new Covered California enrollees chose the cheapest, highest deductible health plans in the the latest from @ab-ibarra.bsky.social @calmatters.org

Read the article: calmatters.org/health/2026/...

1 in 3 New Enrollees Chose the Cheapest Health Plans — Here's Why That's a Problem Covered California enrollment fell 2.7% following the end of enhanced federal premium assistance. That’s better than expected, but many people are making concessions to afford staying insured.

With extended federal subsidies expired, more Californians are choosing Covered CA bronze-level plans, with lower premiums but higher deductibles and copays. But these out-of-pocket costs may discourage people from seeking care, which is worrisome, said Miranda Dietz. calmatters.org/health/2026/...

How the anxiety over AI could fuel a new workers’ movement New technology has workers spooked, but experts say it’s creating an opening for a resurgence in worker power

Lisa Kresge: “There is a concerted effort among many tech leaders to create mystification around AI as a tactic...to disempower workers, policymakers & anyone who might be critical of the growing concentration of funding & resources.” @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/technology/n...

Interview with UC Berkeley Labor Summer Intern Victor Delgado YouTube video by UC Berkeley Labor Center

Students! Do you want a meaningful PAID summer experience learning how to build worker and community power? Then check out our Labor Summer internship program!

APPLY by EOD Saturday, Feb 21: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/labor-summer...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rxq4...

Policy Researcher/Senior Policy Researcher, Health Care Program (Associate/Full Specialist) - UC Berkeley Labor Center University of California, Berkeley is hiring. Apply now!

The @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social is hiring a health care policy researcher.

Join a high-impact team at the forefront of research on the most pressing economic challenges affecting working families in California and across the country.

Learn more and apply: aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05275

Labor Summer Internship Labor Summer is a full-time, PAID, intensive eight-week educational internship program. Students learn from and work with labor and community organizations in Northern and Central California, applying...

Students, if you...

🔹 believe all workers in deserve to work and live in dignity
🔹 want to learn how to build worker and community power

...then @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social's paid Labor Summer internship is for you!

Learn more and apply by Feb 21: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/labor-summer...

Job Opening: Policy Researcher/Senior Policy Researcher, Health Care Program The UC Berkeley Labor Center seeks a Policy Researcher / Senior Policy Researcher for its Health Care Program.

Seeking applicants with strong foundational research skills and an interest in labor and economic justice to conduct policy-relevant research related to health coverage, health care affordability for workers and their families, and the health care workforce. laborcenter.berkeley.edu/job-opening-...

They are organizing together across districts with parents and students to demand the schools that every California student deserves. Danielle Mahones, UC Berkeley Labor center, on the wage of CA teacher strikes

Danielle Mahones @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social breaks down why educators across California are striking for fully funded classrooms, appropriate staffing, access to quality healthcare, and more in the latest from @kqednews.kqed.org

Listen and read: www.kqed.org/news/1207316...

Why Are So Many CA Teachers Going on Strike? - KQED San Francisco teachers are in their third day of a high stakes labor fight with the district, leaving nearly 50,000 students out of school, and they're not alone. Across California, more local teacher...

Why are so many California Teachers Going on Strike? Danielle Mahones discusses this on The California Report. "Educators and families are questioning, in a state with such a large economy, why can't we make different decisions to fund our schools?" omny.fm/shows/kqed-s...

The UC Berkeley Labor Center / Institute for Research on Labor and Employment seeks a Policy Researcher / Senior Policy Researcher – Health Care Program (Associate/Full Specialist) to be based in Berkeley, CA. Details at: unionjobs.com/listing.php?... #1u #UnionStrong @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social

Job Opening: Program Coordinator The UC Berkeley Labor Center seeks a Program Coordinator to support its Labor Management Partnerships program and other programs that engage worker organizations.

CORRECTED JOB ANNOUNCEMENT: The UC Berkeley Labor Center seeks a Program Coordinator to support its Labor Management Partnerships program and other programs that engage worker organizations. laborcenter.berkeley.edu/job-opening-...

Speech bubbles reading "We're Hiring!"

We're hiring! The UC Berkeley Labor Center seeks a Program Coordinator to support its Labor Summer Program and other programs that engage worker organizations. Learn more and apply ➡️ laborcenter.berkeley.edu/job-opening-...

Labor Summer Internship Labor Summer is a full-time, PAID, intensive eight-week educational internship program. Students learn from and work with labor and community organizations in Northern and Central California, applying...

Apply for our Labor Summer internship program by February 21! We're accepting applications from students for this PAID internship, as well as from organizations interested in hosting interns this summer. Learn more: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/labor-summer...

Labor Summer Internship Labor Summer is a full-time, PAID, intensive eight-week educational internship program. Students learn from and work with labor and community organizations in Northern and Central California, applying...

Apply for our Labor Summer internship program by February 21! We're accepting applications from students for this PAID internship, as well as from organizations interested in hosting interns this summer. Learn more: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/labor-summer...

This post brought a smile to our faces.

Testimony before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions hearing on "Modernizing Retirement Policy for Today’s Workforce" Testimony by Nari Rhee before the U.S. House HELP Subcommittee highlighting the challenges that most American workers face in the existing retirement system and offering some considerations for integr...

Nari Rhee's testimony before the U.S. House HELP Subcommittee highlighted the challenges that most American workers face in the existing retirement system and offered some considerations for integrating lifetime income products into 401(k) plans. laborcenter.berkeley.edu/house-help-t...

@german-c.bsky.social and @tnewmsblues.bsky.social will moderate the conversation. Panelists include:

- Tahlia Kirk @alphabetworkersunion.org
- Lisa Kresge @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social
- Varun Iyengar @amzn4climate.bsky.social

REGISTER NOW: techequity.us/event/worker...

An email from UC Berkeley Labor Center that says labor summer opens new worlds for students interested in organizing

When Levin Lam applied for Labor Summer in his senior year at UC Berkeley, he was interested in labor issues but unsure of what path he might pursue after graduation. Almost a year and a successful union internship later, Lam is an organizer assigned to hospitality and custodial workers at Oakland Children’s Hospital. He credits the eight-week Labor Summer internship with the political department at AFSCME Local 3299 with opening up a new post-college pathway. “I would not have been exposed to organizing, “ he said. “I wouldn’t have known it was a path to go down. It’s very fulfilling.” Lam spent his summer signing up union members for training sessions on issues affecting their lives outside of work, such as housing and immigrant rights. He said those efforts helped build support for the union as members saw the organization active in issues that impact their daily lives beyond the workplace. He also shadowed an organizer at UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco who had been having trouble connecting with some Chinese-speaking workers. The workers were resistant to the organizer’s overtures, physically pushing him out the door and even unintentionally slamming it on his foot. Lam, who grew up in a Chinese-speaking home, stepped in and used his Cantonese. A wary janitor decided to give her phone number to the organizer once Lam earned her trust. The experience immediately showed Lam that he had what it takes to be an organizer.

“He’s someone who cares, and this makes all the difference in this work,” said his Labor Summer mentor, Laura Watson, a former AFSCME 3299 organizer who now works at the Labor Center. “He can connect with people and listen.” Lam is drawn to union work because it resonates with his own experience as the child of immigrants, who has, at times, felt marginalized for many reasons. His job now is to support Oakland Children’s Hospital workers in their contract fight, which has been ongoing for about two years. “I didn’t realize how much I enjoy empowering others to fight for themselves,” he said. For more than 25 years, Labor Summer has successfully trained hundreds of students and opened a pathway into labor organizing. “Labor Summer provides a pipeline for young people to enter labor and social justice movements,” said Labor Center Senior Trainer Beatriz Herrera. “Many students want to learn to organize and help change the world, but just don’t know how to get involved. We aim to bridge that gap and enjoy supporting students to develop their skills and step into the labor movement.” For students like Lam, Labor Summer is a game-changer.

This email from @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social brought a smile to my face ❤️❤️❤️ mailchi.mp/berkeley/lab...

Demographic and Job Characteristics of Baltimore’s Security Guard Workforce This factsheet describes the characteristics of the private sector security guard workforce in Baltimore, highlighting the need to improve labor conditions in the industry.

Our new factsheet describes the characteristics of the private sector security guard workforce in Baltimore, highlighting the need to improve labor conditions in the industry. laborcenter.berkeley.edu/demographic-...

Baltimore has “a unique opportunity to be one of the first cities in the nation in setting higher labor standards” for private security, an industry that the report calls “growing and often overlooked.”
www.msn.com/en-us/news/u...

Urban Ore workers win contract after three-year battle - 48 hills Deal ends long labor unrest at legendary Berkeley salvage center

After a 40-day strike last spring, workers at the longtime Berkeley salvage yard Urban Ore have secured a collective bargaining agreement with ownership.

11 things UC Berkeley AI experts are watching for in 2026 - Berkeley News How will AI disrupt the labor market? What will deepfake videos mean for our understanding of truth? Are we in a bubble, and if so, will the bubble burst?

AI experts at UC Berkeley explain what they are watching for in the coming year. For Annette Bernhardt, it's progress on worker technology rights.
news.berkeley.edu/2026/01/13/w...

The Low-Wage Workforce of Color Endowment With excitement and gratitude, we announce the just-established Low-Wage Workforce of Color Endowment, spearheaded by former Labor Center Chair Katie Quan, to ensure ongoing support for research and c...

With gratitude, we announce the Low-Wage Workforce of Color Endowment, spearheaded by former Labor Center Chair Katie Quan, to support our research and capacity building for years to come. We sat down w/ Katie to discuss her vision for the endowment. laborcenter.berkeley.edu/the-low-wage...

The Labor Center congratulates Miranda Dietz, new Health Care Program director Miranda Dietz, who has been the Labor Center’s interim Health Care Program director since July, has taken over as the permanent lead of the program.

We're thrilled to announce that Miranda Dietz is our new Health Care Program director! @mirandadz.bsky.social
laborcenter.berkeley.edu/labor-center...

Can the Fight Against AI Revitalize the US Labor Movement? | Nonprofit Quarterly | Civic News. Empowering Nonprofits. Advancing Justice. As AI becomes a battlefront in the US labor movement, traditional unions still have a role to play in preserving workers’ dignity and rights.

Lisa Kresge: “It really has in the last few years been at an inflection point, which reflects where we are in the moment of AI, as well as where unions are in recognizing the potential threat of AI.” @npquarterly.bsky.social nonprofitquarterly.org/can-the-figh...