November 2007


 

Labor Education Program Update
November 27, 2007
CHICAGO: Yesenia Vargas, 312-996-2624, 815 W. Van Buren Street, Chicago 60607
CHAMPAIGN: Joe Berry, 217-333-2388, 504 East Armory, Champaign 61820

This LEP Update includes activities for both Champaign-Urbana and Chicago sites.

CENTER FOR WORKING CLASS STUDIES (Chicago): November 30, 2-5 pm. The Politics of the New Chicago Labor Movement – the Future of the New Chicago Labor-Community Coalition. At Roosevelt University, Auditorium Building, Room #320. FREE, but register by calling Bob Bruno at 312-996-2491.

HISPANIC INITIATIVE CONFERENCE: (Chicago). Dec. 5, from 6-8:30 p.m.: Knowing your contract: The Nuts and Bolts of Language that Matters. FREE. Call Francisco Montalvo Jr. for more information.

PERU REPORT-BACK (Chicago): Monday Dec 10 at CLEP, 6:00 – 8:30. Helena Worthen and Joe Berry visited Peru Nov. 12-17 at the invitation of a representative of the Ministry of Labor and met with various labor leaders from different parts of the labor movement. During this week the Peru Free Trade Act was passed in the US House, the miners were on strike and there was a strike among professors at all the public universities, as well as a hunger strike. Helena and Joe will report back what we saw, what we heard. Free. Co-Sponsored by Chicago Jobs with Justice and the Global Justice Committee.

PERU REPORT-BACK (Champaign): Tuesday December 11 in the Wisegarver Room, Illinois Disciples Foundation (same building as the Co-op), corner of Wright and Springfield. 6-9 pm. Same program as above. Co-Sponsored by the Champaign-Urbana Jobs with Justice.

CERTIFICATE CLASSES (Chicago): Intro to Labor Law starts Tuesday January 15 and runs every Tuesday night for 6 weeks, from 6:00 –8:30 pm. Steven Ashby, instructor. Cost for all 6 weeks: $150.
Advanced Labor Law: Dealing with the Boards starts Wednesday January 16 and runs every Wednesday night for 6 weeks, from 6:00 – 8:30. Bob Bruno, instructor. Cost for all 6 weeks: $150.
The Intro to Collective Bargaining and Advanced Collective Bargaining: Case Studies classes begin March 4 and March 5 respectively.

CERTIFICATE CLASSES: (Champaign)
: the entire Basic and Advanced Certificate sequences can be offered at your location. Call Joe Berry at 217-333-2388

HISPANIC INITIATIVE CONFERENCE:
Jan. 19- 9:00 a.m.-12 p.m.: Collective Bargaining and Membership Involvement. Contact Francisco Montalvo Jr.

NATIONAL LABOR COLLEGE CLASSES:
CHICAGO:
Ed Planning Jumpstart November 29 at CLEP. These are short drop-in meetings that allow NLC students who are working on their portfolios or other papers to confer with other NLC students or the instructor. There is no charge for jumpstarts but you must sign up in advance. Call Helena Worthen at 217-444-4095.
LBST 2990: Educational Planning. Friday Jan 15, 6-9 pm and Saturday Jan 16, 9-4 pm. This required course is designed to help students clarify their educational goals. Students learn how to develop the portfolio which will become the basis for claiming credit for prior learning, both in and out of college. The class is followed by monthly jumpstart meetings. Cost: $490. Instructor, Helena Worthen
LBST 2000: Introduction to Labor Studies. This, along with the Ed Planning class, is one of the required classes that all NLC students have to take. It introduces participants to the required writing and analytical standards of the College. Through course discussions and essays, students critically evaluate recent scholarship in the field of labor studies. Subject areas include: labor and the economy, comparative union structure and governance, membership attitudes and behavior, labor movement theories, changing member demographics, labor law and legislation, labor history, organizing strategies, globalization, and other contemporary labor issues. (3 semester credits). This course meets 9 am to 4 pm four Saturdays in a row, 2/2, 2/9, 2/16, and 2/23. Instructor: Bob Bruno. Cost: $490.
LBHU 2160 - Images of Labor in Film. Working people, their unions, labor issues, in general, and political movements involving the working class have not been a major presence in film. But when images of labor do appear, they are rarely presented in a favorable light. It is, therefore, very important to see and to understand those images that have appeared because we live in a culture that receives so much of its information (and ultimately many of its opinions) from visual media. The course will survey a number of important films that have strong images of labor, both positive and negative. Students will be expected to see four or five films during class hours. (3 semester credits)This class meets 9 am to 4 pm, four Saturdays in a row in March: 3/1, 3/8, 3/15, 3/22 with Steven Ashby. Cost: $490.

NATIONAL LABOR COLLEGE CLASSES: CHAMPAIGN

LBHU 2160 - Images of Labor in Film. The course description for the Champaign Images of Labor in Film is the same as for the Chicago class. However, this class will meet Tuesday evenings, 6-9 pm, February 4 through April 8, at the Institute for Labor and Industrial Relations. 3 credits. Instructor: Joe Berry. Cost: $490.

ON-LINE CLASSES – UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS DEGREE

Even if you are not a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign student, you can register for our new on-line degree program. The three Online Labor Studies classes that are being offered in Spring 2008 are Intro to Labor Studies; Globalization and Workers; and Workers, Unions and Politics. The cost per 3-credit class is $882. When the Institute for Labor and Industrial Relations has established its BA degree, these courses will apply to your University of Illinois degree. For more information, call Steven Ashby at 312-996-8733 or email him at skashby@uiuc.edu.

REGINA V. POLK CONFERENCE MAY 15-18.
This year the Polk Conference will run Thursday through Sunday to reduce the lost time cost to participants. The collective bargaining simulation will be based on a public sector contract in order to generate workshops dealing with public sector issues. Applications for scholarships will go out to our mailing lists in early December. If you want to make sure you’re on the list, call Yesenia Vargas at the number above.

WORKERS COMP:
The CACOSH guide to the 2005 Illinois Workers Compensation Law is in its second printing. To get a copy ($5), call Emanuel Blackwell at 708-359-3303.

The Digitized Book of the Week: Was it a fair trial? A plea to the Governor to save the lives of the Haymarket martyrs. Follow the following link. If it doesn’t come up on the Haymarket book, search “Haymarket.” Click on the pdf to see every inch of the actual book bigger than life: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/blog/digitizedbotw

Unless otherwise noted, Champaign programs take place at 504 East Armory, in the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, and Chicago programs take place at CLEP, Suite 110 The Rice Building, 815 West Van Buren Street (near Halsted and W. Van Buren). Both locations accessible by public transportation. The LEP Update appears every two weeks. Our downstate faculty can now offer most of our programs at your location. If you would like us to come to your organization or local union meeting, call the numbers listed above or email Illinoislabored@uiuc.edu

Provides some of the most comprehensive hazardous materials training in the Midwest. With twenty years of experience, the program has trained thousands of workers. Its expert instructors and comprehensive curriculum have earned a reputation for high-quality training.

Open Enrollment Classes:

· 40HR Hazwoper
· 40HR Technician
· 8HR Supervisor
· 8HR Annual Refreshers

Contractual Programs
· Confined Space Entry
· Lock-Out/Tag-Out
· Industrial Emergency Response
· Treatment Storage & Disposal
· Customized Safety Seminars

NEW OFFERINGS
8HR Supervisor – October 16, 2007 & April 8, 2008 – Champaign - $225.00
8HR Haz-Com  Compliance  - March 25, 2008 – Champaign - $185.00
3HR Hazwoper Awareness – January 31, 2008 – Champaign – $75.00
4HR Incident Management System Awareness – February 27, 2008 – Champaign – $110.00

HAZARDOUS MATERIALS HOMEPAGE


 

In spring 2008 Labor and Industrial Relations is offering our first online courses! Each semester we will offer more courses on labor studies. Soon we will apply for the creation of a new B.A. degree where all labor studies courses can be taken online. If you also take your general education requirements as UIUC or UIS online courses, you will be able to earn a UIUC Labor Studies degree entirely online.
Who do I call if I have a question about Labor and Industrial Relations’ Online Courses?
Contact Prof. Steven Ashby, Online Coordinator, at skashby@uiuc.edu. Prof. Ashby is in the ILIR Labor Education Program’s Chicago office at (312) 996-8733.

Labor Education Program Update

November 4, 2007

CHICAGO: Yesenia Vargas, 312-996-2624, 815 W. Van Buren Street, Chicago 60607

CHAMPAIGN: Joe Berry, 217-333-2388, 504 East Armory, Champaign 61820

This LEP Update includes activities for both Champaign-Urbana and Chicago sites.

HAZMAT class: November 5 thru 9 (Champaign). 40- hour Technician. Defensive and offensive actions in the event of unplanned hazardous material and chemical incidents. $795. Call Greg Evans at 217-244-4093.

BASIC CERTIFICATE STEWARD TRAINING starts November 6, Tuesday, 6 pm at CLEP. The instructor will be Steven Ashby. This is a 6-week, once-a week class that covers the basics of the role of the steward in representation and grievance handling. Although we prefer people to have taken the first class in the Basic sequence (Intro to the American Labor Movement) – because there is a lot more to being a steward than just processing grievances – you can enroll in this one even if you haven’t taken the Intro. Each Basic class costs $150 for the 6-week sequence. The next class in the Basic sequence will be Labor Law which starts January 15, followed by Intro to Collective Bargaining. Call Yesenia Vargas at 312-996-2624 to enroll.

ADVANCED STEWARD TRAINING (Chicago) starts Wednesday, November 7, at 6 pm and goes for 6 weeks on Wednesday nights. The instructor will be Bob Bruno. This covers grievance handling up to and including preparation for arbitration. If you have not completed the Basic sequence, you need to call Bob and get permission to enroll in this course. Cost: $150 per person for the whole six weeks.

LABOR BATTLES IN THE MISSISSIPPI DELTA (Champaign): Sarah White, organizer for UFCW Local 1529 and President of the Mississippi Workers Center for Human Rights, talks at 7 pm on Thursday Nov. 8 at the Levis Center at 919 W. Illinois St. in Urbana. She will show the documentary on the 1990 Delta Pride strike, the largest strike in Mississippi history.

HISPANIC INITIATIVE CONFERENCES: (Chicago). Dec. 5-6-8:30 p.m.: Knowing your contract: The Nuts and Bolts of Language that Matters. FREE. Jan. 19- 9:00 a.m.-12 p.m.: Collective Bargaining and Membership Involvement (A small fee will be charged). Call Francisco Montalvo Jr. for more information 312.413.0166.

CENTER FOR WORKING CLASS STUDIES: November 30, 2-5 pm
Issues panels: The politics of the New Chicago Labor Movement – the Future of the New Chicago Labor-Community Coalition. This takes place at Roosevelt University, Auditorium Building, Room #320. Free, but register by calling Bob Bruno at 312-996-2491 to reserve a seat and for more program information.

NATIONAL LABOR COLLEGE CLASSES:
Ed Planning Jumpstart November 29 at CLEP. These are short drop-in meetings that allow NLC students who are working on their portfolios or other papers to confer with other NLC students or the instructor. There is no charge for jumpstarts but you must sign up in advance. Call Helena Worthen at 217-444-4095.

GREEN COLLAR JOBS SUMMIT (Chicago): December 7. Wilbur Wright College, 4300 N. Narragansett. Hosted by Chicagoland Green Collar Jobs Initiative (www.greencollarchicago.org). A gathering of green professionals, community organizations, workforce development groups, municipal representatives and others interested in the Green Collar Jobs in Chicagoland. $30.00, some scholarships.

WORKERS COMP: The CACOSH guide to the 2005 Illinois Workers Compensation Law is in its second printing. To get a copy ($5), call Emanuel Blackwell at 708-359-3303.

LABOR RADIO. Download and print out the November radio schedule for The Heartland Labor Forum. You can find it at www.heartlandlaborforum.org then click on schedule.

BUILDING BRIDGES PROJECT. Go to www.buildingbridgesproject.org to see how our search for 36 minority and “hard to serve” individuals who are willing to join an intensive pre-apprenticeship program leading to membership in the Carpenters union is progressing. This project is funded by the State of Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Development in partnership with the University of Illinois and the Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters. It is well-supported (ie, childcare, stipend, transportation assistance, individual case management). The three general neighborhood-community meetings have taken place, but we may need a backup list. Call Dwight McDowell at 773-728-8400 x 28 for more information. Math tutoring for anyone who wants it is taking place now at CLEP. Call Emanuel Blackwell at 708-359-3303.

The DePaul Labor Education Program is looking to hire a labor educator full time. BA or MA ok. Call Bob Breving at 312-362-5823.

Unless otherwise noted, Champaign programs take place at 504 East Armory, in the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, and Chicago programs take place at CLEP, Suite 110 The Rice Building, 815 West Van Buren Street (near Halsted and W. Van Buren). Both locations accessible by public transportation. The LEP Update appears every two weeks. Our downstate faculty can now offer most of our programs at your location. If you would like us to come to your organization or local union meeting, call the numbers listed above or email Illinoislabored@uiuc.edu