Elaine Bernard
Encyclopedia
Elaine Bernard is the executive director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School
and a prominent member of the Democratic Socialists of America
.
drop-out who was able to go to university without finishing High School, Bernard got a job as a service worker at Carleton University
in Ottawa
, Ontario
, Canada
. She began taking classes from 1971 to 1973. In 1976, she graduated with a bachelor's degree
from the University of Alberta
in Edmonton
.
She obtained a master's degree
in history from the University of British Columbia
in 1979, and a Ph.D.
from Simon Fraser University
in Vancouver
in 1988.
in 1980. She left this position in 1982. From 1984 to 1986, Bernard was a labor historian for the Brewery, Winery and Distillery Workers Union (now part of the British Columbia Government and Service Employees' Union).
During her studies at Simon Fraser, Bernard became director of the Labour Program in the university's Continuing Studies division. She continued in this role from 1983 to 1989.
In the fall of 1989, Bernard became executive director of the Trade Union Program (now the Labor and Worklife Program) at Harvard Law School.
, or at least highly class
-conscious) theoretical perspective. She continues to focus on workers in the telecommunications industry, and the role technological change plays in altering work. In the last several years, she has publicly discussed how advancing technology will change how labor unions function (especially in regard to member-to-member and union-member communication and organizing).
Bernard's primary reputation, however, is as public speaker. She is provocative and blunt, and has been known to pleasantly shock audiences with her off-color language. Bernard often takes the American labor movement to task for not being aggressive enough in pushing its agenda, too willing to couch its opinions and conclusions in objective language, and for not engaging in strategic thinking. As Bernard herself has stated, her prescription is for the American labor movement "to be bold, to be explicit, be as loyal to labor as the
business school is to business. Be audacious!" Such statements, as well as her skills as an orator, have made her much sought-after as a panelist and public speaker.
, and the United Association for Labor Education
.
From 1993 to 1995, she was a trustee of the George Meany Center for Labor Studies
.
She is a member of the editorial boards of WorkingUSA
and New Labor Forum
and is a sponsor of New Politics
.
She is a member of the National Writers Union
, Local 1981, United Auto Workers
, AFL-CIO
.
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
and a prominent member of the Democratic Socialists of America
Democratic Socialists of America
Democratic Socialists of America is a social-democratic organization in the United States and the U.S. affiliate of the Socialist International, an international federation of social-democratic,democratic socialist and labor political parties and organizations.DSA was formed in 1982 by a merger of...
.
Early life and education
A high schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
drop-out who was able to go to university without finishing High School, Bernard got a job as a service worker at Carleton University
Carleton University
Carleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...
in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. She began taking classes from 1971 to 1973. In 1976, she graduated with a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
in Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
.
She obtained a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in history from the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
in 1979, and a Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
from Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University is a Canadian public research university in British Columbia with its main campus on Burnaby Mountain in Burnaby, and satellite campuses in Vancouver and Surrey. The main campus in Burnaby, located from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and has more than 34,000...
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
in 1988.
Career
While working on her doctorate, Bernard worked as a labor historian for the Telecommunications Workers UnionTelecommunications Workers Union
The Telecommunications Workers Union is a trade union in Canada for people working for telephone and cable companies. Although the TWU has members from Shaw Cable in the Vancouver area of British Columbia, Canada, the majority of TWU members are employees of Telus .- Early organization at BC Tel:...
in 1980. She left this position in 1982. From 1984 to 1986, Bernard was a labor historian for the Brewery, Winery and Distillery Workers Union (now part of the British Columbia Government and Service Employees' Union).
During her studies at Simon Fraser, Bernard became director of the Labour Program in the university's Continuing Studies division. She continued in this role from 1983 to 1989.
In the fall of 1989, Bernard became executive director of the Trade Union Program (now the Labor and Worklife Program) at Harvard Law School.
Research interests
Bernard's research interests are widespread and varied. Her writings often focus on women and the traditionally female jobs, to which she brings a feminist (some might say quasi-MarxistMarxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, or at least highly class
Social class
Social classes are economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, economists, anthropologists and social historians. In the social sciences, social class is often discussed in terms of 'social stratification'...
-conscious) theoretical perspective. She continues to focus on workers in the telecommunications industry, and the role technological change plays in altering work. In the last several years, she has publicly discussed how advancing technology will change how labor unions function (especially in regard to member-to-member and union-member communication and organizing).
Bernard's primary reputation, however, is as public speaker. She is provocative and blunt, and has been known to pleasantly shock audiences with her off-color language. Bernard often takes the American labor movement to task for not being aggressive enough in pushing its agenda, too willing to couch its opinions and conclusions in objective language, and for not engaging in strategic thinking. As Bernard herself has stated, her prescription is for the American labor movement "to be bold, to be explicit, be as loyal to labor as the
business school is to business. Be audacious!" Such statements, as well as her skills as an orator, have made her much sought-after as a panelist and public speaker.
Memberships and awards
Bernard is a member of the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW), the Society for Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST), the Labor and Employment Relations AssociationLabor and Employment Relations Association
The Labor and Employment Relations Association, founded in 1947, as the Industrial Relations Research Association, is an organization for professionals in industrial relations and human resources. Headquartered at the at the , the national organization has more than 3,000 members...
, and the United Association for Labor Education
United Association for Labor Education
United Association for Labor Education is an international association for post-secondary, community, union and associated labor educators based in Chicago, Illinois....
.
From 1993 to 1995, she was a trustee of the George Meany Center for Labor Studies
National Labor College
The National Labor College is the only accredited higher education institution in the United States devoted exclusively to educating union members, leaders and staff. It was established as a training center by the AFL-CIO in 1969 to strengthen union member education and organizing skills...
.
She is a member of the editorial boards of WorkingUSA
WorkingUSA
WorkingUSA: The Journal of Labor and Society is a comprehensive and significant critical source on the "work" experience, labor movements, and class relations throughout the world...
and New Labor Forum
New Labor Forum
New Labor Forum is a labor journal founded in the Fall of 1997 by the Center for Labor, Community, and Policy Studies, at the Joseph S. Murphy Institute for Worker Education and Labor Studies of the City University of New York...
and is a sponsor of New Politics
New Politics (magazine)
New Politics is an independent socialist journal founded in 1961 and still published in the United States today. While it is inclusive of articles from a variety of left-of-center positions, the publication leans strongly toward a Third camp, democratic Marxist perspective, placing it typically to...
.
She is a member of the National Writers Union
National Writers Union
National Writers Union , founded on November 19, 1981, is the trade union in the United States for freelance and contract writers: journalists, book and short fiction authors, business and technical writers, web content providers, and poets...
, Local 1981, United Auto Workers
United Auto Workers
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...
, AFL-CIO
AFL-CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL–CIO, is a national trade union center, the largest federation of unions in the United States, made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 11 million workers...
.
Solely authored books
- The Long Distance Feeling: A History of the Telecommunications Workers Union. Vancouver, B.C.: New Star Books, 1982. ISBN 978-0-919573-03-1
- Technological Change and Skills Development. New York: Hyperion Books, 1991. ISBN 978-0-7300-1251-1
- Working Lives: Vancouver 1886-1986. Vancouver, B.C.: New Star Books, 1985. ISBN 978-0-919573-48-2
Solely authored chapters
- "The Future of Labour." In After Bennett: A New Politics for British Columbia. Warren Magnusson, Charles Coyle, R. B. J. Walker, and John Demarco, eds. Vancouver, B.C.: New Star Books, 1986. ISBN 978-0-919573-63-5
- "How Jobs are Changing, Where Jobs are Going, Who Controls Technology." In Union Strategies For a High Tech Era. Los Angeles: Institute of Industrial Relations, UCLA, 1989. ISBN 978-0-89215-150-9
- "Labor and Politics in the U.S. and Canada." In Labor in a Global Economy: Perspectives from the U.S. and Canada. Steven Hecker and Margaret Hallock, eds. Eugene: University of Oregon Books, 1991. ISBN 978-0-87114-153-8
- "A Labor Perspective on the Americans with Disabilities Act." In Arbitration 1993: Arbitration and the Changing World of Work. Washington, D.C.: BNA Books, 1994. ISBN 978-0-87179-819-0
- "Last Back: Folklore and the Telephone Operators in the 1919 Vancouver General Strike." In Not Just Pin Money: Selected essays on the history of women's work in British Columbia. Barbara Latham and Roberta Pazdro, eds. Victoria, B.C.: Camosun College, 1984. ISBN 978-0-9691844-0-9
- "Solidarity and Democracy: Creating Democratic Communities in the Workplace." In The New Labor Movement for the New Century. Gregory Mantsios, ed. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1998. ISBN 978-0-85345-937-8
Co-authored articles
- Bernard, Elaine and Schenk, Christopher. "Social Unionism: Labor as a Political Force." Social Policy. 23:1 (Summer 1992).
- Bernard, Elaine and Shnaid, Sid. "Social Unionism and Restructuring." New Labor Forum. Fall 1997.