Labor in the American Economy Econ 330

• Study guide for the final exam
• Extra credit article by Louis Uchitelle
• Extra credit article about job-hunting difficulties for the class of 2002

Course Objectives, Content, and Methods

1. The way that our society defines, organizes, and rewards labor emerges from struggle and other historical contingencies.
2. The way that our society defines, organizes, and rewards labor determines many other parts of our social organization and interaction.

Groundrules and Cooperation

Plagiarism and Academic Honesty

Teaching Assistants

Grading

We will grade each assignment on a 100-point scale. At the end of the semester we will reweight your average for each part of the course according to the following breakdown of the grade.

I encourage you to form study groups, to discuss the texts for the course with each other, and to work cooperatively on the written responses to texts. For most of the assignments in the course, you will write a response of approximately one page in length. For some texts, I will pose a question; in other cases, you will write a more reflective response. You may handwrite or type these short essays. Although you may work cooperatively, each student must submit her or his own written work.

Grades will be assigned according to the following schedule. Please note that your grade depends on a fixed standard of comprehension and expression, not comparisons to other students. Therefore, you should feel comfortable discussing and sharing your notes and ideas with your fellow students as well as collaborating on problem sets.

Readings, Schedule, and Electronica

Most of the readings for the course are on the Electronic Reserve System (http://ereserves.library.umass.edu/) at the W.E.B. Du Bois Library Reserve Room. You will need a password, labor, to access this course on the Electronic Reserve System. The advantage of the Electronic Reserve System is that you avoid the cost of a reader. You must take responsibility for downloading and reading the material.

You must also have a copy of Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickled and Dimed. You can buy the book at the Atticus Bookstore, 8 Main Street, Amherst.

The e-mailing list for this course is econs330-l@econs.umass.edu; If you submit your e-mail address, I will add it to the distribution list. I will use the e-mailing list to post important course information and to address your questions. You may use the list to discuss course material with me or other students and to make announcements that have some relevance for the course. When you send mail to econs330-l@econs.umass.edu, keep in mind that every student on the distribution list and I will receive your posting.

This course has a bulletin board (http://www2-unix.oit.umass.edu/ubb/) which you can use to discuss the course with fellow students. I will browse the bulletin board from time to time and may allocate additional credit for thoughtful postings or discussion. I expect you to use courtesy and respect for each other in your postings.

Schedule

Writing Assignments - follow this link

Reading assignments

Some useful web resources

• Electronic Reserve System (http://ereserves.library.umass.edu/) at the W.E.B. Du Bois Library Reserve Room
  Password: labor
• Econ 330 Suggestion Box
• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Economic Policy Institute
• Political Economy Research Institute