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About the Institute

About us

The Worker Institute at Cornell engages in research and education on contemporary labor issues, to generate innovative thinking and solutions to problems related to work, economy and society. The institute brings together researchers, educators and students with practitioners in labor, business and policymaking to confront growing economic and social inequalities, in the interests of working people and their families. A core value of the Worker Institute is that collective representation and workers' rights are vital to a fair economy, robust democracy and just society.

Worker Institute

Core Offerings

The Worker Institute serves as a hub for policy research, publication, and training for policymakers, entrepreneurs, and activists engaged in the public debate to reduce economic inequality.

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Student Engagement

Student Engagement

The Worker Institute at Cornell is committed to engaging Cornell ILR undergraduate and graduate students through our courses, research fellowships, graduate programs, and other professional development opportunities.

 

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Learn more about our work with students.

In the News

Media Mentions

The Power Half-Hour #3

Power at Work
Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director of The Worker Institute, analyzes the role of unions in current events, such as determining the quality of manufacturing jobs created in the U.S. due to Trump administration policies and fighting deportations of those who held Temporary Protected Status.
The Power Half-Hour #3

New pope's name signals focus on work issues

Law 360
Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director of the Worker Institute, discusses Pope Leo XIV's inauguration as a hopeful moment for unions and workers.
New pope's name signals focus on work issues

Biden-Era Worker Heat Rule Inches to Finish Line Under Trump

Bloomberg Law
Patricia Campos-Medina, executive director for The Worker Institute, says “Extreme heat waves have increased in the last 10 years, so you’re seeing more of a crisis on that, so I hope the administration allows for some minimum guidance.”
Biden-Era Worker Heat Rule Inches to Finish Line Under Trump

Vending Enforcement Slams Poor Minorities in White Neighborhoods, New Report Finds

The City
Most vending tickets are issued in predominantly white and affluent areas to immigrant and minority sellers living in much poorer outer borough neighborhoods, according to a new report by Andrew Wolf, assistant professor.
Vending Enforcement Slams Poor Minorities in White Neighborhoods, New Report Finds

Frustrated Berkeley REI Workers Accuse Co-Op of Union Busting, Straying From Values

REI has not signed an agreement with any of its 11 stores that have voted to unionize over the past three years. “Delaying actually getting to a collective bargaining agreement is a strategy by corporations to kill the will of workers to stay as members of the union,” says Patricia Campos-Medina.
Frustrated Berkeley REI Workers Accuse Co-Op of Union Busting, Straying From Values

Is America Pissed Off Enough at Trump and Musk for a General Strike?

The New Republic
“What they are really asking for is for unions and their community allies to be working together on a coordinated level that is ahistorical,” said Eugene Carroll, a longtime labor educator and organizer and a Worker Institute Fellow.
Is America Pissed Off Enough at Trump and Musk for a General Strike?

Blog: Latest News and Events

Read more stories from the Worker Institute Blog

ILR and Friends Remember and Recommit to Lois Gray’s Legacy

On April 17, friends and colleagues of the late Lois Gray gathered at ILR’s New York City office to remember the life work of the beloved and respected labor leader.
View of the audience, people sitting and some standing up at the back
ILR and Friends Remember and Recommit to Lois Gray’s Legacy

ILR Union Leadership Institute Holds Reunion in New York City

Despite late May rain, 85 alumni of Cornell ILR’s Union Leadership Institute gathered in New York City to reunite over 20 years of program cohorts.
Group of five people on stage delivering address at ULI reunion
ILR Union Leadership Institute Holds Reunion in New York City

New Report: ILR’s Worker Institute Examines NYC’s Street Vending Laws

Cornell ILR’s Worker Institute recently published a new report, “Evaluating the Regulation and Reform Implementation of Street Vending Laws in New York City,” by Andrew B. Wolf and Dylan M. Hatch.
People standing in front of food carts
New Report: ILR’s Worker Institute Examines NYC’s Street Vending Laws

Lois Gray Innovation Initiative 

Lois Gray, ILR School faculty member

 

The Lois Gray Innovation Initiative was founded by labor pioneer Lois Gray to generate innovative thinking and solutions to problems related to work, economy, and society.

The Lois Gray Innovation Fund provide financial incentives for collaboration between resident and extension faculty in relation to priority programs of The Worker Institute.

It ensures faculty, researchers and students have the opportunity to fulfill the institute’s mission of advancing worker rights and collective representation.

Explore the initiative