Here to win,
here to stay
Join Western Massachusetts Labor Action (WMLA), an association of, by and for Western Massachusetts’ lowest-paid workers. No working person should be living in poverty!
Join Western Massachusetts Labor Action (WMLA), an association of, by and for Western Massachusetts's lowest paid workers. No one should work full-time but still be living in poverty.
Volunteer and Make a Difference
WMLA members and volunteers work together to build an 11‑point self-help, membership benefit program including emergency and supplemental food, clothing, utility advocacy, legal advice and much more. These benefits are an important beginning to permanently end poverty for Berkshire County workers.
Join as a WMLA Member
Membership is available to all workers (currently working or not) who request it and agree to the terms of being a member. People wishing to sign up as members can come to the WMLA office anytime, seven days a week. All members are eligible for the free-of-charge 11-Point Membership Benefit Program.
Learn More About WMLA
As Berkshire County confronted widespread job losses and falling incomes, many residents saw that direct services or poverty programs, while alleviating some symptoms of poverty, were not addressing the root causes of the problems faced by working people. That is where WMLA began.
WMLA Grows Sustainable Organization
Since 1974, low-income workers have united with students, local business owners, professionals and others to build strong, independent organization that can change economic conditions starting with those on the bottom. WMLA is 100% volunteer and non-government funded.
Conditions in Our Area
Over 37,000 Berkshire County residents struggle to make ends meet, and more than 16,000 live below the government’s sub-survival poverty level. General Electric once employed as many as 13,000 workers in the area before closing its transformer plant entirely in 1987. Sprague Electric employed as many as 4000 until closing in 1985. None of those jobs remain. As unionized production jobs declined, service work became predominant. Typical jobs now are part-time, seasonal and minimum wage.
