For the third year in a row, UC Santa Barbara students participated in “Labor Summer,” a program that gives a group of students on-the-ground experience in labor organizing, planning rallies, and advocating for workers in a wide range of industries on the Central Coast.
UCSB’s Community Labor Center started the Labor Summer program in 2023, placing 11 students with labor unions such as United Farm Workers (UFW), United Domestic Workers of America (UDW), and local chapters representing public sector employers. This year, 14 students participated in the program, interning at a diverse range of groups, including United Auto Workers, Greenpeace, Central Coast Labor Council, community organizations such as CAUSE and MICOP, and unions representing nurses, public employees, and food workers.
Run by Labor Center Executive Director Carmen Rhodes, Academic Coordinator Fabienne Doiron, and Faculty Director Ralph Armbruster-Sandoval, the program aims to create a pipeline for students interested in labor organizing, and to “cultivate the next generation of labor leaders,” Armbruster-Sandoval said.