.Adin Feder lives in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. After getting a bachelor’s degree in English, Feder is now a participant in Union Semester, taking classes at SLU and interning at Laborers Local 79. Since the beginning of January, the union has been protesting that the Empire State Building’s management company uses nonunion construction labor.
Adin’s supervisor is Robert Tiburzi, who also participated in the Union Semester program, receiving an Advanced Certificate in Labor Studies in 2016. Tiburzi interned at Local 79 at the time and has worked there ever since, currently serving as a researcher in the organizing department. He said: “I am very proud that Local 79 has been a mentor to over 10 Union Semester interns. I also get to work with two other alums, Nadja Barlera and Laura Mistretta, who both work for the Laborers’ Eastern Region Organizing Fund.”
SLU Chronicle: What motivated you to join the Union Semester program?
Adin Feder: I want to build a career that uplifts workers. Union Semester seemed like an incredible opportunity to build concrete skills through the internship component and strengthen my understanding of labor law and labor history through the academic component. I can already see that both of these pieces will be of tremendous value as I look for opportunities to support organized labor.
What is your internship at Local 79 like?
I am interning in the research wing of LiUNA Local 79’s Organizing Department. The work is dynamic. Because of the way the construction industry operates, the Organizing Department has to be vigilant about making sure developers maintain their commitments to utilizing well-trained union labor. The Organizing Department also needs to constantly build relationships and create opportunities that will ensure steady work for current and future members and raise standards across the industry.
My job so far has been an exciting mix of identifying labor infractions by low-road contractors, analyzing wage and hour data to build support for the Construction Justice Act, and reviewing capital strategies proposals. I’ve also had a chance to join members at multiple actions.
How does your past job experience inform your current work?
I previously worked in demolition and house painting in Massachusetts and Colorado. The companies I worked for specialized in suburban residential renovations and new construction. I enjoyed the work and learned a lot from my colleagues, but also became familiar with a number of the challenges that unorganized workers in the industry face. Misclassification, wage theft, and safety issues are all too common for unorganized workers, and I’m proud to be in a role where I can help uplift union construction jobs that provide fair pay and safe working conditions.
What do you want to accomplish this semester?
I’m so excited to learn from my brilliant colleagues. It has been incredible to see how they are working strategically to build leverage that will hopefully clinch important wins in the political arena and at the negotiating table. Under their guidance, I hope to strengthen my own strategic research, political organizing, and labor organizing skills.
What’s next for you?
Coming out of this semester, I hope to continue supporting organized labor through research or organizing.
Are you planning to continue your studies at SLU after this semester?
I’ve loved my classes so far so it will just depend on where life takes me.