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Audio Recording Louis Alvarez interview conducted by Setare S. Arashloo and Barrie Cline and Paul Vance, 2017-02-24

Audio recording of interview with Louis Alvarez.
Audio recording of interview with Louis Alvarez.

About this Item

Title

  • Louis Alvarez interview conducted by Setare S. Arashloo and Barrie Cline and Paul Vance, 2017-02-24

Summary

  • A rich discussion of labor laws; union, worker and contractor relations; and the Local 3 bureaucratic structure. Louis Alvarez has been an electrician for 28 years and is currently a Shop Steward and Executive Board member of Local 3. His family immigrated from Colombia and he was raised in Astoria, Queens. He shares stories from his first day of work and various job sites--from walking on the tip-top of Williamsburg Bridge, to doing electrical work near Ground Zero, to his experiences as a volunteer. He explains contracts between Local 3 and contractors, and his experiences working as a Local 3 electrician and officer. He provides insights about the jobs, the policies, and codes of conduct used to protect people and equipment; and preventing fires through revisions enacted after the 9/11 World Trade Center tragedy. He believes being a union member is like being part of a family, being supported and protected. He talks about Local 3 traditions and clubs, specifically the Santiago Iglesias Educational Society. He also speaks about technology and its effect on the trade; his concerns about labor laws and unions--specifically, that right-to-work laws might be changed during the administration of the 45th U.S. president (Trump); and the dangers of passing legislation detrimental to workers' laws and unions.

Names

  • Alvarez, Louis, 1967- interviewee
  • Cline, Barrie, interviewer
  • Vance, Paul, 1985- interviewer
  • Arashloo, Setare S., interviewer
  • Occupational Folklife Project, sponsor

Created / Published

  • 2017-02-24

Headings

  • -  Alvarez, Louis,--1967---Interviews
  • -  Apprenticeship programs
  • -  Blue collar workers
  • -  Clubs
  • -  Collective bargaining
  • -  Hazardous occupations
  • -  Income
  • -  Jargon (Terminology)
  • -  Job satisfaction
  • -  Labor unions
  • -  Occupational training
  • -  Quality of work life
  • -  Wages
  • -  Work and family
  • -  Work environment
  • -  Work ethic
  • -  Work sharing
  • -  Work-life balance
  • -  Workmanship
  • -  Electricians--New York (State)--New York--Interviews
  • -  Electric industry workers--New York (State)--New York--Interviews
  • -  Long Island City (New York, N.Y.),--event place

Genre

  • Sound recordings
  • Digital photographs--Color--2010-2020
  • Interviews
  • Oral histories
  • Personal narratives

Notes

  • -  Note: this interview contains explicit language.
  • -  Recorded at Mr. Alvarez's dining room , Long Island City, New York, February 24, 2017.
  • -  Illuminating history: union electricians in New York City, Archie Green Fellows Project, 2016-2017 (AFC 2016/035: 03600) Archive of Folk Culture, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
  • -  To honor the memory of Archie Green (1917-2009), a fellowship program was established at the American Folklife Center in 2010. Archie Green Fellowships support new research in the contemporary culture and traditions of American workers.
  • -  In English.

Medium

  • 1 sound file (wav) (01:02:26) : digital, sound.
  • 1 photograph : digital, jpg, color.
  • 1 manuscript : pdf, text file.

Source Collection

  • Illuminating history: union electricians in New York City, Archie Green Fellows Project, 2016-2017 AFC 2016/035: 03600

Repository

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2020655314

Rights Advisory

  • Duplication of collection materials may be governed by copyright and other restrictions.

Access Advisory

Online Format

  • image
  • audio
  • pdf

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress is not aware of any U.S. copyright protection (see Title 17, U.S.C.) or any other restrictions in the material in this collection, except as noted below. Users should keep in mind that the Library of Congress is providing access to these materials strictly for educational and research purposes. The written permission of the copyright owners and/or other holders of rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. See our Legal Notices and Privacy and Publicity Rights for additional information and restrictions.

The individuals documented by the Occupational Folklife Project retain copyright and related rights to the use of their recorded and written testimonies and memories.  They have granted the Library of Congress permission to provide access to their interviews and related materials for purposes that are consistent with the agency’s educational mission, such as publication and transmission, in whole or in part, on the Web. Project participants’ written permission is required for any commercial, profit-making distribution, reproduction, or other use beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

The American Folklife Center and the Occupational Folklife Project fieldworkers who carry out these projects feel a strong ethical responsibility to the people they have visited and who have consented to have their lives documented for the historical record. The Center asks that researchers approach the materials in this collection with respect for the culture and sensibilities of the people whose lives, ideas, and creativity are documented here. Researchers are also reminded that privacy and publicity rights may pertain to certain uses of this material.

Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these collection materials should contact the Folklife Reading Room for assistance. 

Credit line

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Ethnic Grocers in the Urban Midwest: Archie Green Fellows Project, 2014-2015 (AFC 2013/016), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

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The Green Book--Documenting African American entrepreneurs: Archie Green Fellows project, 2018-2019 (AFC 2018/029), Archie Green Fellows Project American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

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Homeless Shelter Workers in the Upper Midwest: Archie Green Fellows Project, 2016-2017 (AFC 2016/034), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Hope for Recovery: Peer Support Workers in Kentucky: Archie Green Fellows Project, 2020-2021 (AFC 2020/010), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

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Kitchen Workers in Central Ohio: Archie Green Fellows Project, 2017-2018 (AFC 2017/020), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

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Personal Home Health Care Aides in Michigan: Archie Green Fellows Project, 2017-2018 (AFC 2017/018), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

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Tillamook: Cheesemakers in Coastal Oregon: Archie Green Fellows Project, 2021-2022 (AFC 2021/011), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Alvarez, Louis, Interviewee, Barrie Cline, Paul Vance, Setare S Arashloo, and Sponsor Occupational Folklife Project. Louis Alvarez interview conducted by Setare S. Arashloo and Barrie Cline and Paul Vance, -02-24. -02-24, 2017. Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/2020655314/.

APA citation style:

Alvarez, L., Cline, B., Vance, P., Arashloo, S. S. & Occupational Folklife Project, S. (2017) Louis Alvarez interview conducted by Setare S. Arashloo and Barrie Cline and Paul Vance, -02-24. -02-24. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2020655314/.

MLA citation style:

Alvarez, Louis, Interviewee, et al. Louis Alvarez interview conducted by Setare S. Arashloo and Barrie Cline and Paul Vance, -02-24. -02-24, 2017. Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2020655314/>.