The Worker Institute brings together researchers, educators and students with practitioners in labor, business and policymaking to address issues related to confronting systemic inequality and building a fair economy, robust democracy and just society. We will share opinion, analysis, research, data, insights and training from our faculty and staff.
Worker Institute in the News
WI Faculty Awarded Einhorn Center Fellowship to Publish Research on Domestic Workers
Zoë West, senior researcher for worker rights and equity at Cornell ILR’s The Worker Institute (WI), has been selected as one of the Engaged Faculty Fellows for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Cornell ILR Hosts ‘Stories of Belonging’ Exhibit on Temporary Protected Status Holders
The struggles of temporary protected status holders were displayed in a days-long exhibit in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. Held from Sept. 16 through the 20 at the Thomas P. Golden Courtyard, the exhibit highlighted the experiences of people with nonpermanent immigration statuses.
Learning to lead: ILR institute trains the next generation of union organizers
Cornell Chronicle
A former sanitation worker, Hill is one of 32 labor professionals set to graduate June 6 from the AFL-CIO/Cornell-ILR Union Leadership Institute (ULI).
When the pendulum of justice moves backward, your generation must resist it | A 2022 commencement essay
NJ - Star Ledger
In an open letter to the Class of 2022, Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director of the Worker Institute, says "You must be comfortable with the tension that exists between going along to get along or challenging the status quo."
Podcast: Organized Labor Sees Promise in Transition to Clean Energy
Lara Skinner, Director of Labor Leading on Climate Initiative Cornell University ILR School spoke with The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy the University of Pennsylvania on a podcast: "Organized Labor Sees Promise in Transition to Clean Energy.
New Report Outlines Equitable Climate Action Plan for Rhode Island
Climate Jobs Rhode Island and Cornell University recently released a report outlining a climate jobs action plan to put Rhode Island on the path to meeting the state’s climate targets and building an equitable renewable energy economy.
Labor and environmental coalition calls for R.I. to transition to a clean energy economy
Boston Globe
A report by Cornell University researchers details crises involving climate change, the pandemic, and inequality, recommends major public projects involving wind energy, schools, and electrical grid
New York's food delivery bicyclists and drivers demand more workplace rights
CBS News
This piece mentions a survey out of the ILR School and the advocacy group Los Deliveristas Unidos finding that two-thirds of the surveyed delivery drivers work at least six days a week and average just over $12 per hour, including tips.
The Market Starts Speaking Out on a Tech Worker Union Effort at The New York Times
"Unions play an institutional role in influencing decisions in capitalist systems as shareholders," said Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director for the Worker Institute at the Cornell University School of International Labor Relations.
Activision Blizzard employees at Raven Software ask management to recognize new union
The Washington Post
“Given the negative publicity that Activision Blizzard has received regarding its conduct toward employees, Microsoft should pay particular attention to the importance of respecting employees’ rights to organize," said Prof. Risa Lieberwitz , Academic Director or the Worker Institute.
Video game giant Activision Blizzard faces worker walkout
NBC News
Video game giant Activision Blizzard faces worker walkout. "This is a really important moment for everyone," says Risa Lieberwitz, Academic Director, The Worker Institute.
Supreme Court Blocks Biden’s COVID-19 Vaccine or Test Rule, Allows Healthcare Requirement
Vaccine rules issues by New York State and New York City unlikely to be affected by Supreme Court decision blocking vaccine-or- testing rule for large businesses, says Prof. Risa Lieberwitz, Academic Director, The Worker Institute.
WORK ‘All work produces value’: What experts say Eric Adams gets wrong about ‘low skill’ workers
CNBC
“All work is work and all work is dignified,” says Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director of The Worker Institute at Cornell University. “All work produces value for our economy.”
Amazon Reaches Federal Settlement Allowing Workers More Leeway to Organize
Wall Street Journal
Amazon's NLRB settlement allowing workers more leeway to organize “can give an enormous boost to organizing at Amazon and at other large employers in the United States,” says Risa Lieberwitz of ILR's Worker Institute.
The Pandemic Struck Orchestras With Underlying Conditions Hard
The New York Times
“Workers across the spectrum are demanding more and feel like they have more power,” said Patricia Campos-Medina, a longtime labor activist who serves as executive director of Cornell University’s Worker Institute.
Dr. Patricia Campos-Medina, the Executive Director of the Worker Institute at the Cornell School of Industrial Labor Relations, says one of the biggest factors is the global pandemic. Campos-Medina points out that many workers had to deal with enhanced risks in the workplace.
The Great Resignation: Why four million US workers a month are leaving their jobs
El Pais
Patricia Campos-Medina, Executive Director of The Worker Institute at Cornell University, lists some of the factors contributing to this talent drain, among them dissatisfaction. “We have been through times of personal and financial anxiety."
Solving labor, last-mile delivery key to Amazon's 1-day shipping ambitions
S&P Global
"I think workers want more security for going back to work, which includes more control over their lives," Campos-Medina said. "We are seeing a seismic shift in what workers expect. It's not as easy as a sign-on bonus or raising wages."
42% of food delivery workers say they've been underpaid, according to ILR's Worker Institute and the Workers Justice Project's study cited by The Wall Street Journal in wake of FTC warning to companies about unfair practices.
Chuck Schumer Aims to Deliver Infrastructure Dollars to Help Food Couriers
The City
Nearly half said they’ve been in a crash while doing a delivery, according to the survey done by the Workers Justice Project and the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
How low-wage workers are taking back power in the ‘Great Resignation’
Patricia Campos-Medina, the executive director of the Worker Institute at Cornell University, said workers, even if not through formal unions, are demanding basic rights. “What we’re seeing is a fundamental shift in the relationship between service workers, low-wage service workers, and employers,” she said.
Activision Bias Settlement Draws Challenge From California
Bloomberg Law
Risa Lieberwitz, Worker Institute Academic Director and a professor of labor and employment law at Cornell University, said "My overall assessment is that it would be unusual for a state agency to object to an EEOC settlement."
Fed up by pandemic, US food workers launch rare strikes
AP News
After decades of watching companies chip away at pay and benefits, food workers sense that they have a rare upper hand in the wake of the pandemic, says Patricia Campos-Medina, the executive director of The Worker Institute at ILR Cornell.
Worker advocates demand transparency in Port Authority's million-dollar deal with Amazon
Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director of the Worker Institute at Cornell University and a specialist in worker rights in the logistics and distribution industry, wanted to know if the company is committed to long-term jobs at its logistics facilities, saying negotiations like these can include Community Benefit Agreements.
Study explores ‘harrowing’ safety risks mobile app-based delivery workers face
From December through April, researchers from Los Deliveristas Unidos, the Worker’s Justice Project and The Worker Institute at Cornell University surveyed 500 adult couriers from around the city. They found that 49% of the respondents had experienced a crash or some other type of incident.
New York Passes Sweeping Bills to Improve Conditions for Delivery Workers
The New York Times
A survey of 500 app food delivery workers by the Worker Institute at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations and the Workers Justice Project found that 42 percent of workers had experienced being underpaid or not paid at all.
A Search for the Delivery Worker in a Viral Hurricane Ida Video
The New Yorker
The Worker’s Justice Project and researchers from Cornell University, the group released a report on the working conditions in the delivery industry in New York, based in part on a survey of five hundred app delivery workers.
How the US labor movement is getting to grips with the climate crisis
The Guardian
Through organizing led in part by the Climate Jobs National Resource Center and the Workers Institute at Cornell University, this strategy has been adopted in other states around the US, such as New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Illinois and Texas.
