The Labor Education Program at UMass Lowell is part of the university-wide Labor Extension Program, with branches in Lowell, Dartmouth, Boston and Amherst. Since 1995, the Labor Extension Program has provided hands-on training and technical assistance to workers, union members and community organizations to help them fully and effectively represent an increasingly diverse membership, to train a new generation of union leaders to face the challenges of the future, and to prepare all workers, organized and unorganized, to exercise their full rights in the work place and the community.
Labor Studies Interdisciplinary Minor
The Labor Education program works in partnership with faculty teaching in the Labor Studies minor and interacts with students in the minor by providing a “real world” connection through service-learning, practicum opportunities, collaborative teaching, and guest speakers. The program staff coordinate and administer the service learning projects, co-instruct Introduction to Labor Studies, and serve on advisory committee of the Labor Studies minor.
Extension and Outreach
The program provides training, education and strategic consulting to regional and statewide labor and worker organization engaging in economic and workforce development activities. The Labor Extension Program provides educational services and technical assistance to unions in the region covered by the Merrimack Valley, North Shore and Central Massachusetts.
Future of Work Research Initiative
The Future of Work in Massachusetts is a joint research project of the Labor Centers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth and Lowell, funded by the University of Massachusetts' President's Office with monies provided by the Massachusetts legislature.