UCLA Labor Center

New research findings from KIWA, the UCLA Labor Center, and AAPI Data shed light on the experiences of Ktown supermarket workers.

Read the full report to learn more: bit.ly/LCOWUP

71% of Koreatown Supermarket workers are low-wage workers—and the vast majority struggle to make ends meet.

Learn more about the stagnant wages and experiences of wage theft within KTown supermarkets in our latest report: bit.ly/LCOWUP 🔗

This piece covers our newly released research report, Overworked & Under Pressure: A Study of Supermarket Workers in Los Angeles and Orange County Koreatowns. Read it now to learn more about the often unseen experiences of these workers. 🛒🔍

📢 Published today: Read the latest report from the UCLA Labor Center, KIWA, and AAPI Data, “Overworked & Under Pressure: A Study of Supermarket Workers in Los Angeles and Orange County Koreatowns”.

Full report: bit.ly/LCOWUP

Catch the next screening of "A Better Way" at the Pan African Film Festival on February 21st. 🎥

The documentary follows Rev. James Lawson Jr., civil rights icon and the namesake of our MacArthur Park building.

Screening Information available at: lnkd.in/gDHPAYdt 🔗

LA wants to fence MacArthur Park. Locals don't think it will fix anything. | LA Local A fence around MacArthur Park could make it easier to maintain, officials say. Some locals are on the fence about the whole plan.

“It’s also been used as a political pawn. It’s used by the right wing to highlight what’s wrong with LA, it’s used by people like myself, to show the vibrancy, the diversity, and really the humanity of the city,” said Project Director Victor Narro. (
@victornarro1.bsky.social
)

RSVP Now! Join us on February 18 at 10am to hear findings from our newest report, Overworked & Under Pressure: A Study of Supermarket Workers in Los Angeles and Orange County Koreatowns.

bit.ly/4r0QBsp 🔗

It’s that time of year! The UCLA 2026 Labor Summer fellowship is now accepting applications. 👏

📣 Open to University of California (UC), California Community College (CCC), and California State University (CSU) students and recent grads

🔗 Apply now at: bit.ly/LS26FELLOW

Powerful stories from organizers and researchers reflecting on the impact of 2025 fires on workers and communities. Economic and health impacts linger much longer than public attention. Need to prepare now for the future climate-related disasters that are sure to come

L.A.’s Meatpacking Industry Is a Lot Like the Rest of the Country. Experts Say Here’s How to Make it Safer. Better work training and pay structure could improve labor conditions.

“It’s like David versus Goliath,” Brian Justie, senior research analyst at @uclalabor.bsky.social, says of taking on the food industry. “How could you possibly battle this behemoth?”

The 2026 national Dream Summer fellowship application is now open (and we're celebrating our 15 year anniversary)! 🤩🌤

🌟 Apply now at: bit.ly/DS26FELLOW

2025 Annual Snapshot: Cultivating Community Resilience In this historic year for not just our organization, but workers across the globe, we could not be more proud of sharing our annual accomplishments with you: the community of labor partners who make t...

We invite you to read our 2025 Annual Snapshot to learn more about the various ways our community has persevered to advance worker and immigrant justice.

🔗 bit.ly/LC25CCR

“A recurring refrain that kept coming to mind as we were doing the research,” Brian Justie, a lead researcher on the report, tells Sentient, “was something that one of the workers said to us…‘speed over safety.’” But there are ways to make the industry safer, Justie says.

📢 Join us in-person on January 15th, 2026 to hear from experts on how the 2025 fires impacted the workers involved in recovery efforts.

📍 UCLA James Lawson Jr. Worker Justice Center

🔗 RSVP now at bit.ly/4jx09IR

Visible and Invisible: How ICE Is Terrorizing Chicago’s Working Class Fear, panic, hiding for days—this is the experience of families under assault by the Trump Administration

“The ICE raids are everywhere,” says LC Project Director Victor Narro @victornarro1.bsky.social, ​“so there’s already that fear. The employers tap into that fear to keep them in a situation where they become afraid to complain about working conditions. So then you see a higher level of violations.”

Join the UCLA Labor Center's Nonviolence Education Project on December 10th for an in-person panel featuring student activists and immigrant rights leaders.

🗓 December 10 from 5:30 to 8:00pm

On Tuesday, labor advocates and community members joined UCLA Labor Center director Saba Waheed in a conversation with former US Secretary of Labor Julie Su. 🔥

This timely discussion marks the first public talk held at the newly renovated James Lawson Worker Justice Center.

Wage theft is rampant in the meatpacking industry.

New research findings from the UCLA Labor Center shed light on the experiences of meatpacking and food processing workers in LA county.

📊 Full report: bit.ly/LAMPFP

Don't miss out!

Register now to join UCLA Labor Center Director Saba Waheed @sabawa.bsky.social for a conversation with former U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su. 💬

📍Where: 675 S Park View St, Los Angeles, CA 90057

⏰ When: November 18 from 4-6pm

🔗 bit.ly/JSULAB

There has been an alarming increase in child labor within the meatpacking industry. ⚠️

Learn more about this industry’s vulnerable workforce in a new report from the UCLA Labor Center: bit.ly/LAMPFP

Harm to Table: Vulnerability and Exploitation in Los Angeles County Meatpacking and Food Processing Over the course of the 20th century, the combination of enormous consumer demand and an abundant supply of low-wage and immigrant workers made Los Angeles County a regional hotspot and powerhouse for…

📢 New report from the UCLA Labor Center:

“Harm to Table: Vulnerability and Exploitation in Los Angeles County Meatpacking and Food Processing” examines the conditions of the industry and offers practical recommendations to support workers.

Read the findings: bit.ly/LAMPFP 🔗

The UCLA Labor Center and our partners at the Young Workers Education Project, @cftunion.bsky.social , and @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social have been at the forefront of creating educational resources and curricula to support student learning. 🔥📚

On Oct. 14, the Los Angeles Unified School District unanimously approved the workplace readiness resolution.

The resolution introduces a framework to educate high school students about their workplace rights, addressing a critical knowledge gap to support young workers.

We invite you to join us in-person on Friday, November 14th for a convening to discuss our newest publication, BEYOND SANCTUARY, and its relevance to the moment at hand. RSVP>> beyondsanctuary.eventbrite.com

NEXT WEEK: This virtual panel will explore the findings of the upcoming UCLA Labor Center and El Centro report, Harm to Table: Vulnerability and Exploitation in Los Angeles County Meatpacking and Food Processing. ⚠️

RSVP now: bit.ly/4hbWf6O 🔗

Obituary: Kent Wong, 69, labor and immigrant rights champion and former director of UCLA Labor Center Kent Wong, former director of the UCLA Labor Center from 1991-2023 and professor of labor studies and Asian American studies, died Oct. 8. He was 69. An esteemed community leader…

We invite you all to read the Labor Center's official obituary for Kent Wong, published on our website.

🔗 bit.ly/kentwongobit...

Statement on the passing of former director Kent Wong The UCLA Labor Center is deeply saddened to share that Kent Wong, our former director for more than 30 years, has passed away. Since joining the UCLA Labor Center in 1991, Wong had been a…

The UCLA Labor Center is deeply saddened to share that Kent Wong, our former director for more than 30 years, has passed away. His legacy lives on with every staff member and student at the UCLA Labor Center.

labor.ucla.edu/statement-on...