Director: Jason Read (Philosophy) Jason.Read@maine.edu
Committee: Kevin Van Meter (Scontras Center for Labor and Community Education) kevin.vanmeter@maine.edu
The minor in labor studies examines many aspects of work and workers but focuses especially on the relationships among individual lives, work, class processes and dynamics, and capitalist development. The minor in labor studies addresses the practical problems of work, workers, and their organizations as well as broad conceptual and theoretical issues including, but not limited to, the relationships among labor, work, and class; a critical examination of class processes and dynamics; a critical examination of capitalist development; the intersections of class with race, ethnicity, gender, and generation; and historical perspectives on all of these topics.
The minor is an interdisciplinary program drawing on faculty and courses from economics, geography, history, arts and humanities, and sociology. Courses provide substantive knowledge of these disciplines and will help to develop critical thinking and analysis skills, writing and oral communication skills, and social science and historical research methods.
Because nearly every individual and organization deal with employees and work, there is constant demand for graduates with understanding and abilities in this area. Students will be prepared for careers in the private sector, labor unions, social services, and all levels of government.
