Where
University of Massachusetts Boston100 Morrissey Blvd
UMass Boston Labor Resource Center
Wheatley Building 4th floor, room 151
Dorchester, MA 02125
Driving Directions
The Boston Labor Conference
Boston is a city of contrasts. On the one hand, it is home to one of the highest median incomes in the country, boasts an exceptionally well-educated population, and possesses dynamic industries that generate incredible wealth. On the other hand, not only are the benefits of relatively good wages mitigated by the high cost of living, but overall wage growth has done little to reduce inequality. In recent years, higher wage workers have seen their earnings grow at twice the pace of middle-wage earners, while low-wage workers have actually seen their earnings decline. To make matters worse, as bad as inequality was before 2008, it only got worse during the recession and the subsequent "recovery." The majority of new jobs created since the recession have been in low-paying sectors of the economy, contributing to Boston's dubious distinction as the number one ranked city in the country in terms of income inequality.
The Labor Resource Center is pleased to host The Boston Labor Conference so we can explore the challenges facing working-class people and the labor movement in our region. Conference sessions will include:
- Workers' Rights and Organizing: Challenges of Surviving Trump's Presidency
- State of Labor in the Boston Metro Region
- The State of the Opposition in Boston: Elites and Regional Development
- Organizing through Inequality
- Organizing in Higher Education
- Labor Research and Education in the Age of Trump