HTY 477-0001: The American Worker
Instructor: McKillen, Elizabeth
Days/Time: MWF 2:00 – 2:50 Pm
Location: Stevens 155
Course Number: 24268
Description: Tired of that job flipping burgers or working as a cyber drudge? Want to know more about the history of work and efforts by employees to exert more control over their work life? Hty 477 explores the changing world of work in the United States from the artisan era of the early nineteenth century, through the industrial revolution, to the contemporary era of the “gig economy.” The course also considers the diverse efforts of workers to gain more control over their work lives, from informal types of collective action on the job, to trade unions, to governmental interventions, and to third-party politics. We will additionally explore how racial, ethnic, and gender divisions sometimes undermined working class solidarity.
General Education Requirements: Western Cultural Tradition, Cultural Diversity and International Perspectives