Organizing Skills

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The Learn Organizing Skills track of the Labor Summer Internship Program introduces students to unions and the labor movement. Students get the opportunity to learn from some of the nation’s most exciting and important campaigns that are making a difference for working people, especially immigrants and people of color. Interns will learn the tools of the trade such as 1:1 organizing conversations, strategic planning, communications, coalition-building, worker education and training, and campaign evaluation.

Students who apply for this track should be excited to:

  • Conduct in-person outreach and education in working-class communities, worksites, and homes
  • Conduct outreach by phone, email, or text
  • Recruit new members or volunteers
  • Talk with people face to face and listen to their stories
  • Plan and/or attend rallies, actions, and events
  • Travel to different worksites on a daily basis
  • Work with a flexible schedule that may include odd hours or weekends

Learn Organizing Skills Training

Interns in this track will participate in a two-day Organizing 101 Workshop during orientation week, where they learn from seasoned labor and community organizers working at labor unions and community-based organizations. Together they learn the basics of organizing conversations, identifying and developing leaders, and campaign planning.

Previous Learn Organizing Skills track interns have:

Career opportunities

The Labor Summer program hopes to place students in labor-related jobs after graduation. In 2022, 8 students continued working with their host sites after the internship concluded. Past interns have continued to work in the labor movement with unions or community-based organizations including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE), Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), California Nurses Association (CNA) and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM).

Still have questions about the program?
Frequently Asked Questions

"This experience has definitely opened up my eyes to the exploitation that can take place when there isn't a balance in power dynamics between employer and employee. I now understand the necessity of unionizing all workers, thereby promoting equality and justice as values that are foundational to enriching the community at large."
- Labor Summer Intern