Fwd: 403.12 Urbs next semester

[einat manoff]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: cg <cindy...@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, Apr 30, 2012 at 9:27 AM
Subject: 403.12 Urbs next semester
To: hunter...@googlegroups.com, Chris Franqui <mhshs...@gmail.com>


Hi all!  I wanted to let you guys know I am teaching a seminar on
Urban labor next semester called punching out it is urbs URBS 403.12
Here is the description.

Course Description for Urban Labor

Fall 2012

Monday 10:10AM-12:30PM



This course will cover a variety of topics in urban labor over the
course of one semester. The overall goal of the course is to
understand current labor relations in New York, through the lens of
everyday workers.  The course will use an analysis of capitalism that
focuses on the value form of labor, to understand the changing
composition of capitalism as it relates to workers and struggles over
and against exploitation.  The course will specifically examine the
changing relations of workers to New York City over the last fifty
years, with a specific focus on how workers organization has changed
the physical landscape of the city, and the experiences of working
people in New York.  The course will also demystify labor
unions/organized labor, labor law, and unorganized labor.  Often times
trying to learn about labor is an “alphabet soup”, and in this course
we will break down different organizations and their historical
trajectories through real life experiences.  The course will be
divided into units, and each unit will feature theoretical or
historical concepts, and a corresponding concrete example.  The course
will also feature field trips and guest speakers, and will be
discussion based.



Course Outline:

This course will look at the following themes in labor, divided into
thirds, with each sub theme lasting 1-2 weeks.  By examining these
themes, we will work to understand how our everyday experiences in the
city—construction, shopping, transportation—are all effected by labor.
Each sub-theme will feature an example to make the theory and history
concrete:

First third of the course will be on labor history

1)     Industrial production in the city: early gender and race relations

2)     Development of labor law: no strike clauses, new forms of contracts

3)     Labor and the 1970’s financial crisis in New York

Second third of the course will be on New York City Labor Unions

1)     New York and the AFL-CIO

2)     The rise of SEIU and UNITE HERE

3)     The IWW

4)     “Illegal” workers: undocumented immigrants and the workplace

The final section of the course will focus on contemporary labor
struggles.  We will follow recent and ongoing workplace struggles, and
have presentations from representatives of organized and organizing
labor.



The course readings will be distributed via Blackboard and will
feature a mix of news articles, books, and book chapters, and academic
articles.  Students will learn how to synthesize information from
different sources, and how to read critically.



Additionally, students will be required to do a “unit assignment” at
the end of each of the three sections, where they write a 5 page
paper, and present to the class.  Each student will be required to
present on 2 out of 3 of the papers.  This work, in addition to in
class writing assignments, and class participation, will make up the
evaluation of the course.