Dr. Gonzalez-Vasquez has 17 years of experience conducting quantitative and qualitative research and evaluation projects. In 2010, she co-authored a ground-breaking report on the prevalence of wage theft and workplace violations among low-wage workers in Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago. She also co-authored the first comprehensive study on transportation network companies in Los Angeles. At the Labor Center, she is leading the expansion of the Labor Center’s workforce development area of work, with a focus on building a high road economy and prosperity for all through research, education, evaluation, and coalition and movement building. Dr. Gonzalez-Vasquez connects the Labor Center’s work to statewide systemic change initiatives making the workforce development system more accessible and easy to navigate for worker organizations serving marginalized communities in California. Recently, she co-led the development and implementation of the HRTP initiative in California, and has co-produced documents on the HRTP framework and model. Prior to joining the Labor Center, Dr. Gonzalez-Vasquez was the Project Coordinator of the UC Irvine Community and Labor Project. At UCI, she conducted a wage theft study on low-wage workers in Orange County and was a lecturer at the Law School. Dr. Gonzalez-Vasquez earned a dual B.A. in Economics and Social Science with a specialization in Public and Community Service and a minor in Spanish from UCI. She earned her Master’s and Ph.D. in Urban Planning from UCLA.
