Hannah Lorenc

• Performed empirical survey research to support report on the role of organized labor in building a more equitable economy in WNY through collective bargaining, policy advocacy, and community collaborations. Interviewed a number of union members and stakeholders.
• Coordinated political education, campaigns, and non-partisan registration for union members.
• Helped plan and execute the annual “Interview Day” where local candidates for elected office meet with labor representatives and pitch their platforms for potential endorsement
• Participated in the regular field work of the ALF attending a number of labor meetings and other coalitions. Shadowed mediators and union reps during negotiations.

“This experience of working on the labor project has been instrumental in guiding my career path. I’m gaining both the connections within and knowledge about the field I plan to be entrenched in after my graduation. I’ve shadowed various union representatives in collective bargainings and mediations and have received career and life advice from people who I now am grateful to consider my mentors. My coursework in ILR directly feeds into my work here in Buffalo. I am able to develop a keen understanding of the economics that surround union issues —including minimum wage, pensions, and inflation— because of my economics courses. I have declared an unofficial concentration in conflict resolution, which has aided my understanding of union grievance procedure and collective bargaining. Buffalo is constantly developing, and so am I. I’m humbled to be afforded the opportunity to dig my stake into this city and work with activists to help it grow, just as I grow. Buffalo is a part of my hometown and may very well be where I settle after I leave Cornell, so I am privileged to make impactful changes to the state of the city that I consider home.”

-– From Hannah's Reflection Journal

“Hannah did wonderfully in her time at the WNY Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO.  She was exposed to the comprehensive and all around aspects of the WNY labor movement, and was a welcomed addition to the WNYALF staff.”

--George Boger, Field Coordinator