Labor unions need your skills, the assistant dean of Chicano/Hispano student affairs said yesterday.

Solomon Baldenegro, assistant dean of Chicano/Hispano student affairs, spoke to a group of about 25 people in the Student Union Cellar about the importance of labor unions in the United States.

The country needs the dynamic between laborers and management that unions offer, Baldenegro said.

The presentation, sponsored by the Women's Resource Center, was part of the AFL-CIO representatives' effort to recruit 1,000 students to participate in their summer internship program.

The AFL-CIO provides interns with the opportunity to travel across the country and speak with business communities and their employees about the union's benefits, said union organizer Michelle Brauer.

Maria Federico, history senior, said in an interview before the presentation that unions keep businesses in check. They are important because they organize labor and promote unity in the workplace by having employees working for one cause.

Baldenegro was a union organizer in 1979 and walked picket lines in Silver City to unionize the mining industry.

He said, "There is a wide range of job opportunities in the labor industry like economists, lawyers, lobbyists and writers."

The AFL-CIO is offering a three-week paid internship this summer with housing and transportation provided.

Baldenegro said, "This is no paper-pushing job. It will be a great feeling to know you made a contribution to someone's life."

Labor unions have had a tremendous impact on the country's history, he said. Unions are responsible for the implementation of overtime pay and businesses providing employee health insurance.

Judy Talbot, anthropology graduate student, said unions are beneficial to employees because they participate in legislation at state and national levels that are beneficial to workers.

Talbot, a banquet server at The Westin La Paloma, supported the union's formation at the resort by volunteering to do legal research to educate employees about labor laws. The idea of a union was defeated at the resort in a 188-57 vote.

Interviews for the internships will take place at the Career Center of Old Main from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday.