
South Coast Working
By UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center

South Coast WorkingOct 13, 2022

Postal Workers: Keeping Communities Connected in a Changing Industry
The technical term for the postal workers who deliver mail to our homes is “letter carriers.” Granted, you may not remember the last time you sent a letter. But the last time you received a mail-in ballot, got your prescription medications in your mailbox, or stooped down to pick up a package delivered by a USPS employee was probably quite recent. In this episode, we walk a mile in the shoes of mailmen and mailwomen from around New England.
Postal workers keep our communities connected, even as digital communications, private competition, and political shifts threaten their livelihoods and add stress and hours to their days. Some see their job as more than just delivering mail, like Maggi Burns in Providence, Rhode Island. Maggi says when a customer sees her out in a snowstorm and tells her “you shouldn’t be out in this weather,” she replies “Oh, I'm not really out here to bring you your mail. I'm out here so that you see that everything's gonna be okay.”
In April 2022, postal workers celebrated a major victory with the passage of the Postal Reform Act. The legislation requires the United States Postal Service to continue to operate Monday through Saturday. And it eliminated a retiree funding mandate that put an unsustainable burden on the agency.
The Postal Reform Act was the result of a decade of efforts by the National Association of Letter Carriers and the American Postal Workers – unions that represent the majority of postal employees. But it’s just a start. For this episode, we spoke with postal workers and community members who want more from the USPS– things like basic banking services at post offices, and more competitive starting salaries. You’ll hear from veteran workers reflecting on a career of service, and a young manager working to bring more dignity to her employees' careers.
South Coast Working is a project of the UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center. Learn more at umassd.edu/labored.
Voices in this episode
Maggi Burns, letter carrier in Providence, Rhode Island
Erin Durkan, postmaster in Somerset, New Hampshire, and host of the podcast Postal Blues
Peter Arsenault, retired letter carrier and former NALC president, Rochester and New Bedford, Massachusetts
Corinn Williams, Executive Director, New Bedford Community Economic Development Center, New Bedford, Massachusetts
Contributors to this episode
Host and producer: Andrea Muraskin
Writing and additional production: Susie Armitage
Research and fact-checking: Johnny Handel
Executive editor: Kim Wilson
Special thanks: Camilo Vivieros, Jim Snow, and
Music in this episode by One Man Book, Meavy Boy, Poddington Bear, Blue Dot Sessions, and Doctor Turtle

Building Equity: Diversifying Construction on the South Coast
Construction work is one of the few careers left in the United States where a person can make a good living without a college degree. However, it’s also one of the few fields available to high school graduates with a work force that’s still predominantly white and male. So what will it take for women and people of color to get a bigger piece of the pie, and to land the construction jobs that provide the best wages, benefits, and safety standards – union jobs—and benefit from Massachusetts’ building boom?
In this episode you’ll meet Tara Williams, who brought herself and her children out of poverty through determination, and a brand-new career in the building trades. You’ll learn about the training program where Tara got her start, and the first-in-the-nation green energy project that’s bringing new union construction jobs to the South Coast. Also covered is the shadow side of the construction economy – the exploitation of undocumented workers – and efforts to bring their employers to justice.
South Coast Working is a project of the UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center. Learn more at umass.edu/labored.
For more information about starting a career in the building trades in Massachusetts, visit buildalifema.org. To learn more about the story behind Vineyard Wind, check out the series Windfall from the podcast Outside/In, at windfallpodcast.org.
Voices heard in this episode:
Tara Williams, Apprentice, Laborers’ International Union of North America (taraluba@gmail.com)
Jim Pimental, Vice President/Organizer, Bricklayers & Allied Craftsmen
Yvonne Tobey, Program Manager, Building Pathways South
Kim Wilson, Director, UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center
Dave Araujo, President, Southeastern MA Building Trades Council
Ernesto Belo, Organizer, North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters
Derek Adamiec, Business Representative, North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters
Recording of Jose Soler courtesy of New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center.
Contributors to this episode:
Host/Producer: Andrea Muraskin, independent podcast producer
Executive Producer: Kim Wilson, Director, UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center
Production Assistant: Rachel Dufresne, Artist in Residence with the UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education, and a UMass Dartmouth undergraduate
Special thanks:
Liz Skidmore, Laura Orleans, Avory Brookins, Camilo Viveiros, and Jim Snow.

Union Strong in Nursing Homes in The Age of Covid
In the early months of the pandemic, health care workers were lauded as heroes, especially those who worked with the most vulnerable – the elderly and people who couldn’t take care of themselves. From March to September 2020, nursing home residents made up 40% of COVID-19 deaths. Nursing home residents are at high risk because of their age, higher rates of pre-existing illness, and the close quarters they live in. However, a study published in the journal Health Affairs found that nursing homes in New York State where the workers belonged to a union experienced a 30% lower mortality rate, compared to facilities in the state where the workers were not unionized.
So why the difference? In this episode, journalist Kortni Smyers-Jones speaks with study co-author Adam Dean of George Washington University, healthcare workers, and union leadership to get answers.
South Coast Working is a project of the UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center. Learn more at umass.edu/labored.
Voices heard in this episode:
Adam Dean, Assistant Professor of Political Science, George Washington University
Terri Jarry, UMass Dartmouth intern and surgical technician at Rhode Island Hospital
Herbert Jean Baptiste, Vice President, SEIU 1199
Contributors to this episode:
Host/Producer: Kortni Smyers-Jones, independent journalist
Executive Producer: Kim Wilson, Director, UMass Dartmouth Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center

Waiting for the Train: Is Commuter Rail Finally Coming to The South Coast?
This episode chronicles the long-awaited arrival of commuter rail line infrastructure that will connect New Bedford and Fall River with Boston - and all of the economic advantages it offers. Now-graduated student journalist, Liz Anusauskas speaks with prominent commuter leaders Siggy Meilus, founder of UMass Dartmouth's transportation advocacy organization, Bus Riders United, and Eric Camallo, president of Fall River's Amalgamated Transit Union Local 174. These conversations take listeners on a deep dive into the complexities of public transportation and the profound impact its presence, or lack therof, can have on a population.

A Silenced Partner: The Truth About Your Favorite Rideshare Companies
While individuals with white collar employment worked from home during the pandemic’s most dangerous days, ride and delivery share workers continued to risk their wellbeing while making tech companies millions. In this episode, journalist Kortni Smyers-Jones explores efforts to end the injustices gig workers across the nation are facing, through conversations with people in the industry. She speaks with Chicago Rideshare Advocates organizer the Lori Simmons, Boston Independent Drivers Guild members Felipe Martinez and Henry De Groot, Georgetown University’s Global Cities Initiative post-doctoral research fellow Dr. Katy J. Wells, and Lyft driver Chris Swanson.