Dolores Huerta Labor Institute

"We're taught about the Carnegies and the Fords, and all those millionaires, but not what working people do,” said Dolores Huerta who unionized farmworkers with Cesar Chavez in the 1960s.

Why DHLI?  Because It’s Your Job, Your Life

Most adults spend at least half their waking hours engaged in some form of work activity.  During the last century, deindustrialization, deregulation, casualization, and information technology radically altered the ways in which work is done. These changes affect many aspects of the human condition. As a result, uneven opportunities emerged for different segments of the United States workforce.  The numbers of men and women who work full-time year round and continue to remain below the poverty threshold increased significantly.  These changes even negatively impact the quality of life of professionals and technical employees.  Consequently, social justice and self-determination is intimately connected to the workplace.  In order to be prepared to face the challenges of the workplace, community college students need the educational resources necessary to tackle the changing world of work.  DHLI helps students face these challenges.

What We Do

Working people, unions and the labor movement play an important role in improving the lives of working individuals and families in Los Angeles County. DHLI is the first institute of its kind created to educate community college students about labor issues and history.  We develop learning opportunities that allow many of the 130,000 students attending the nine campuses of the LACCD to learn about the political, social and cultural impact of work, the public and private policies that govern employment, the practice of democracy in the workplace and society and the significance of the labor movement.

DHLI develops educational tools that inform and better prepare students for the workforce and social justice efforts.  We do this by offering teaching resources for faculty, classes, special lectures, film series, workshops and seminars, and internships for students.  With these educational resources, students will leave the LACCD colleges well-informed and better prepared for the workforce.