Sara Gia Trongone is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research examines contemporary labor movement renewal in the U.S. and the ways in which unions and worker organizations adapt to a changing economy. In her dissertation, she explores how workers win social, economic, and political power, the conditions under which those wins spread or scale, and what induces social movement organizations to coordinate through a comparative case study of four worker organizations in Chicago. Her research has been published in Mobilization and Work and Occupations. She is a Graduate Research Fellow with the Institute of Research on Poverty and an active member of the Wisconsin labor movement. Prior to starting her Ph.D. program, she received a master’s degree from the NYU Steinhardt School of Education, focusing on critical pedagogy.
Talk Title: Working for the Public Good: Organizational Dilemmas & Strategy in Public Sector Unions
Description: This talk examines the growing surge of labor mobilization in the public sector and its roots in Chicago after the 2008 financial crisis. Through a matched case comparison of two public sector union locals, I explore why the U.S. has seen a wave of ‘common good’ strikes among educators but not other public sector workers. Using comparative-historical analysis, I generate a theoretical framework that accounts for variation in strategic decisions among unions operating outside of a traditional market relationship. I find that strategy is mediated by what I call organizational dilemmas, or the set of obstacles and opportunities that derive from how the state organizes public services, the nature of the labor process, and the structure of workers’ organizations.
RSVP: bit.ly/laborspeaker_trongone
Event Location: In-Person + Zoom
Public Talk: 12-1:30 PM
In-Person: Labor Studies Speaker Series events will take place at the Public Affairs Building 4320. Coffee and water will be served.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://ucla.zoom.us/j/97048837464?pwd=M2ZaVXNpRVFHRC80RHdDeFpLU1I5QT09
Meeting ID: 970 4883 7464
Passcode: 312642
