2014 Summer PAID Fellowships
NEW YORK CITY
ITHACA
BUFFALO
ROCHESTER
FROM: Prof. Kate Griffith, on behalf of the Worker Institute
SUBJECT: Worker Institute Undergraduate Research Fellows Program (Spring 2016)
We write to invite you to apply for an Undergraduate Research Fellowship with the Worker Institute.
At its heart, the Worker Institute views its work as a contribution to reversing the growing inequality, now at
historic levels, which undermines the economic and social sustainability of a vibrant democratic society. The
Institute provides the nation’s most comprehensive education, training, research, and organizational support for
union leaders and worker advocates. Worker Institute research fellows, often in small teams, will have the
opportunity to work directly with Ithaca-based faculty and ILR labor extension faculty based in NYC,
Rochester and Buffalo.
The fellowship program’s goal is to provide ILR students with a unique opportunity to contribute to important
projects concerning workers and unions, expand their research skills, learn about potential career paths and
interact with faculty, labor leaders and other fellows.
Fellows will work 5-10 hours/week, paid at an hourly rate of $12/hour.
APPLICATION PROCEDURES: Applications are due on or before December 10, 2015.
Please fill out the attached application form and email it, along with your resume and a writing sample, to Anne
Sieverding (acs5@cornell.edu) by December 10, 2015.
The main selection criteria include a strong academic record and a demonstrated interest in one of the Worker
Institute’s research areas.
Award notifications for Spring 2016 fellows will be announced by January 13, 2016.
If you have any questions please email Kate Griffith (kg275@cornell.edu)
2014 Summer PAID Fellowships
NEW YORK CITY
ITHACA
BUFFALO
ROCHESTER
FELLOWSHIP APPLICATION FORM: Due December 10, 2015
Please complete all three parts of the application and email it to Anne Sieverding (acs5@cornell.edu) by
December 10, 2015. Also, please attach your resume and a writing sample.
Part I:
Name/Address/Email:
Cornell Class of:
Please indicate any languages other than English in which you are proficient:
Name and contact information of reference (ILR faculty member):
Part II: Please indicate which of the five project(s) listed below you are interested in. If you are interested in
more than 1, please designate your first choice with a “1”, second choice with a “2”, and so on:
____ Immigrant Workers Website: A Resource Portal for Organizing Immigrant Workers. Fellows assigned to
this project will conduct field research, including interviews with practitioners and academics, research updates,
Buzzfeeds and news stories. In a “relaunch” of this website, to make it into a lively forum, fellows will
participate in the gradual rollout of stockpiled material. In addition to research, fellows will have the
opportunity to post materials on the website. – with Lowell Turner, Prerna Sampat and Shannon Gleeson,
http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/workerinstitute/mai/.
_____Labor Leading on Climate: Climate Jobs Program for New York State – a policy, research and education
initiative for New York unions, workers' organizations and their allies on labor-climate-employment issues,
with a focus on how ambitious climate protection policy can drive job creation and economic development in
New York State. The purpose of this initiative is to enhance the role of labor and working people in addressing
the climate crisis. WI Fellows will conduct research to assist in the writing of a "Climate Jobs Report for New
York State" that will demonstrate that the jobs and climate crises can be addressed simultaneously by creating
"climate jobs" in renewable energy, public transit, building energy efficiency, sustainable food and waste
systems and other sectors. – with Lara Skinner and Alex
Colvin,http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/workerinstitute/initiatives/labor-environment-and-sustainabledevelopment.html.
______"Men at Work" (and Family): Caregiving Responsibilities among the Working Class/Equity at Work –
For a study of how men represented by a New York city construction union balance the demands of caregiving
and paid work, fellow will help analyze needs assessment survey, do comparative research, help plan and
transcribe interviews and present results to the union leadership. – with Ileen DeVault, Beth Livingston, KC
Wagner
______ Union Communication Services (UCS): UCS publishes a newsletter for union stewards and produces
books for union staff on various topics. The Fellow would contribute to the work of UCS by gathering contract
clauses from union contracts on newer issues in the workplace. These clauses would be for a book on
sample/model contract language for union negotiators on topics such as: Telecommuting, Prevention of Sexual
Harassment, Anti-bullying, Domestic Violence, Child Care, Rights for undocumented workers, outsourcing,
issues of interest to younger workers, wellness programs, new technologies, etc. – with Ken Margolies
______ Young Workers and the Labor Movement – a 5-country study of best-practice cases of young worker
engagement in the labor movement (in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France and the
Netherlands). Fellows will conduct in-depth case studies of youth groups inside unions and other organizations
that advocate for workers – with Lowell Turner and Maite Tapia (project co-directors; Maite is an ILR PhD
now on the faculty at Michigan State and a Worker Institute Fellow)
Part III: Please answer the following questions:
1.
Why are you interested in this particular project? If you have indicated interest in more than one,
please provide a brief description of your interest in each (no more than one paragraph each).
2.
Please describe any relevant coursework, experiences, skills and abilities or anything else that you
would bring to the project and make you a good candidate.
3.
Will you be available to work up to 10 hours/week during the Spring 2016 semester?