Build Your Skills at the National Labor College
The National Labor College (NLC) is offering a new round of skills-building courses, beginning in January, in areas ranging from negotiation and organizing to working with new union staff.
New offerings in the NLC’s Bonnie Ladin Union Skills program include the following courses: Contract Negotiations in the Private Sector, Arbitration Preparation and Presentation 1, Secretary-Treasurers LM-2 Requirements, Organizing 1, Negotiating and Writing Contract Language and New Union Staff. Click here to register today.
All classes take place at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Md. More information is available here.
Philip Levine: Reflecting the Poet’s Vision of Working in America
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When the nation’s Poet Laureate, Philip Levine, gives a reading of his work tomorrow here at the AFL-CIO, he will recite poems that weave a lyrical web of words around his visceral understanding of the world of work. Levine, whom the Library of Congress named Poet Laureate in May, and who has written of his experiences working in Detroit factories in the post-World War II years, finds his verses especially resonate with America’s workers—and that’s in part because his portrayals are so honest. (To attend the event, which begins at 1 p.m. Nov. 15, RSVP here.)
“I hated many of the jobs I had—they were hard, they were dirty, they were brutal, working lousy hours,” Levine recalls of the time he spent working at forges, on assembly lines and around slag heaps. Yet he also notes:
When I became a union worker, things were a hell of a lot better.
His experiences on the job without a union burned an anger in him so deep that for years he tossed every poem he wrote about that time. Quoting the poet William Wordsworth as saying Read the rest of this entry »
Credit Card Debt? Wedding Planning? Labor College’s Online Tool Can Help
Zachary Teutsch in the AFL-CIO Office of Investment, announces the launch of a fantastic new resource for all of us to gain and improve our financial literacy.
Most schools don’t teach our kids about avoiding credit card debt. Most of us never had anyone take the time to teach us about the financial implications of a birth, a death, a wedding, a divorce, or retirement. This is because there isn’t much financial education in the United States and most of it is by salespeople who would like us to buy their products.
We know that union members around the country face tough financial issues and would like good, honest, fair information. The National Labor College and AFL-CIO have partnered to provide resources and answers at NLC InvestEd. You can download the NLC’s Investor Handbook, learn about mutual funds, balancing stocks and much more.
Some of the topics covered include:
- Buying A Home
- Children
- College
- Foreclosure
- Loss of a Loved One
- Paying Off Debt
- Retirement
- Weddings
Head over to NLC InvestEd and check it out.
As working people, our financial security is under threat and the AFL-CIO knows that having better information about financial issues is one more way we can push back. If you have questions about this new project, leave them as comments here.
Sign Up Today for Skills Classes at National Labor College
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Time is running out to get into classes to build your union skills and learn how to be an effective union organizer and contract negotiator. The Bonnie Ladin Union Skills Program at the National Labor College (NLC) offers a series of online courses to provide tools for building a stronger union movement. The first five union skill courses set for September are filling up, so click here to enroll today.
The skills courses that begin next month include Organizing I, Contract Negotiations in the Private Sector, Grievance Mediation, Arbitration Preparation and Presentation Level I and Secretary-Treasurers LM-2 Requirements. Click here for the complete Bonnie Ladin Union Skills calendar, online registration, complete course descriptions, tuition information and more.
It’s Not Too Late to Enroll in Labor College’s Online Union Skills Courses
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If you want to sharpen your union skills or learn how to be an effective union organizer and contract negotiator, the National Labor College (NLC) has the courses for you. The Bonnie Ladin Union Skills Program offers a series of online courses to provide tools for building a stronger union movement. The first five union skill courses being offered in September are filling up, so enroll today here.
The skills courses being offered next month include Organizing I, Contract Negotiations in the Private Sector, Grievance Mediation, Arbitration Preparation and Presentation Level I, and Secretary-Treasurers LM-2 Requirements. Click here for the complete Bonnie Ladin Union Skills calendar, online registration, complete course descriptions, tuition information and more.
The courses are named in honor of the late Bonnie Ladin, who for 30 years usied her talent for helping members and staff to train generations of organizers and other leaders for SEIU. She served in several SEIU leadership positions, including director of the Office Worker Division, the “Dignity” Nursing Home Organizing Campaign and the Healthcare Division. Prior to her death earlier this year, she worked as an educator at the Labor College.
This year NLC also is offering a new degree program just for union members and their families. You can earn a degree in Labor Studies, Business Administration, Construction Management or Emergency Readiness and Response. Register today for the fall semester at www.nlc.edu/new-students/degree.
Great Labor Arts Exchange Kicks Off June 17
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Don’t miss the explosion of arts and activism at the 2011 Great Labor Arts Exchange June 17-19 at the National Labor College (NLC) in Silver Spring, Md. The three-day festival brings together union and social justice activists who combine union mobilization and outreach with songs, skits, art, poetry, theater, posters, cartoons and film.
The festival will be topped off Sunday, June 19, with a public gala concert with conference participants and national and international artists, such as Anne Feeney, Bev Grant, Pam Parker and Charlie King. Members of four labor choruses—D.C., New York City, Solidarity Notes and Charm City—and others will perform in the concert in the NLC auditorium.
Also check out the the Creative Organizing Conference, where activists discuss the best ways to use art to help spread the union message.
For more information on either event, click here.
Scholarships Available for Creative Organizing Conference
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Scholarships are available for anyone who wants to participate in the Conference on Creative Organizing, June 17–19 at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Md., and doesn’t have money for the registration fee. To find out more about the scholarship, call 202-639-6204. The information is not available online.
You also have time to register online for the Great Labor Arts Exchange and the Creative Organizing Conference. The three-day festival brings together more than 100 union and social justice activists who combine union mobilization and outreach with songs, skits, art, poetry, theater, posters, cartoons and film. For more information or to register online for either event, click here.
Sponsored for more than 30 years by the Labor Heritage Foundation, the Great Labor Arts Exchange celebrates the rich cultural heritage of working people and serves as a forum that brings together talented labor artists, activists, cultural workers, educators and students.
New this year is Camp Solidarity, designed to bring the arts and cultures of the union and progressive movements to a new generation.
Organizing and Art Join at Great Labor Arts Exchange
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There is still time to register for the Great Labor Arts Exchange and Conference on Creative Organizing, June 17–19 at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Md.
The three-day festival brings together, more than 100 union and social justice activists who combine union mobilization and outreach with songs, skits, art, poetry, theater, posters, cartoons and film.
Sponsored for more than 30 years by the Labor Heritage Foundation, the Great Labor Arts Exchange celebrates the rich cultural heritage of working people and serves as a forum that brings together talented labor artists, activists, cultural workers, educators and students.
New this year is Camp Solidarity, designed to bring the arts and cultures of the union and progressive movements to a new generation.
For more information or to register online, click here or call 202-639-6204.
Register Now for the Great Labor Arts Exchange
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Register today for the Great Labor Arts Exchange and Conference on Creative Organizing, June 17–19 at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Md. The early registration deadline is May 31.
Over three days, more than 100 union and social justice activists will participate in programs that combine union mobilization and outreach with songs, skits, art, poetry, theater, posters, cartoons and film.
For more than three decades, the Labor Heritage Foundation has sponsored the Great Labor Arts Exchange to celebrate the rich cultural heritage of working people and served as a forum that brings together talented labor artists, activists, cultural workers, educators and students.
Register Now for Online Courses at National Labor College
Lara Manzione, vice president for marketing and communications at the National Labor College, reminds union members there’s still time to register for college courses.
If graduation season is making you wish you had completed your college degree, now is the time to do something about it. The National Labor College (NLC) is the labor movement’s own institution dedicated to educating union members and families. The college is currently registering students for the fall. If you apply before June 1, 2011, the application fee ($60 value) is waived. The tuition is highly discounted for union members (about $250 per credit) and many union classes or apprenticeships are eligible for automatic credit. Union Privilege also sponsors a number of scholarships to help with tuition.
Courses are taught online so you can schedule time for school when it’s convenient for you. So, whether you need one more class to get your degree or two years’ worth, now is the time to look into the National Labor College’s bachelor’s degree programs in Labor Studies, Business Administration, Construction Management and Emergency Readiness and Response at www.nlc.edu/new-students/degree.
