A crowd gathers at an open house at the Plant Connector in downtown North Adams. Press photo by Kate Abbott

Jobs

Here are the Hill Country Observer’s articles about jobs, listed from newest to oldest. Questions about local economies surface in The Hill Country Observer as we follow movements in co-ops, small businesses, nonprofits and sustainable ways to make a living in our rural communities and support kinds of work that fulfill workers and local needs.

  • Issue:

    For the love of horses

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      The thoroughbreds run at Saratoga Race Course in a scene from 2013. Photo by Joan K. Lentini   By STACEY MORRISContributing writer SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. The first race was an hour away as fans poured through the turnstiles at Saratoga Race Course on the first Sunday of this summer’s thoroughbred meet, but already there read more

    For the love of horses
  • Issue:

    The devilish details of legal pot

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    With New York facing a budget gap of nearly $15 billion, is this the year the state will finally legalize marijuana for recreational use? By Evan Lawrence read more

    The devilish details of legal pot
  • Issue:

    Restoring Pawlet’s historic general store

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    After a lengthy renovation, Mach’s Market has been reborn, thanks to the vision of owner Gib Mach. By Stacey Morris read more

    Restoring Pawlet’s historic general store
  • Issue:

    Knitting, weaving through a dark season

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    Farmers come together with skilled workers from textile mills, artists and locals who like the feel of making things by hand. By Kate Abbott read more

    Knitting, weaving through a dark season
  • Issue:

    A farm, tables and a taste of empowerment

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    Family’s restaurant operation aids immigrants, refugees Jinah Kim, above, welcomes visitors to Sunhee’s Farm and Kitchen, her family’s restaurant in Troy, N.Y. Joan K. Lentini photo   By STACEY MORRISContributing writer CAMBRIDGE, N.Y. Amos Kim is tending to a row of swelling pumpkins as another scorching August day reaches its peak. There are weeds to read more

    A farm, tables and a taste of empowerment
  • Issue:

    Work at home? Not so fast

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    Rural towns work to upgrade spotty, slow Internet links   Arlene Bentley and Bill Meyer stand with a laptop computer outside the Rosalind K. Kittay Public Library in Rupert, Vt. The local library is the only WiFi hotspot in the rural town, where most residents can’t get high-speed Internet service at home. Joan K. Lentini read more

    Work at home? Not so fast
  • Issue:

    Bakery, cafe unite in urban retrofit

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    Rock Hill’s restaurant side rises again in new space at Shirt Factory complex   Matt Funiciello, the owner of Rock Hill Bakehouse, removes several loaves of bread from the oven at the bakery’s new home in the Shirt Factory complex in Glens Falls. Joan K. Lentini photo   By STACEY MORRISContributing writer GLENS FALLS, N.Y. read more

    Bakery, cafe unite in urban retrofit
  • Issue:

    Local fruit, hand-rolled crust

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      Katie Daino works on making pies in the kitchen of Smith’s Orchard & Bake Shop in Charlton. Daino’s mother, Shelley Smith, started the orchard’s baking operation in 1999; now they turn out more than 100 pies on an average day. Joan K. Lentini photo   By STACEY MORRISContributing writer CHARLTON, N.Y. At first glance, read more

    Local fruit, hand-rolled crust
  • Issue:

    Worker rights arrive at the farm

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    Farmers, advocates weigh effects of New York’s new labor law   Roman Chaidez drives a tractor past the heifer facility he manages for Walker Farms LLC in Fort Ann, N.Y. Joan K. Lentini photo   By TRACY FRISCHContributing writer   A Guatemalan man who works at a dairy farm in southern Washington County describes himself read more

    Worker rights arrive at the farm
  • Issue:

    Northern Berkshires’ blue-collar lament

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    Professor’s book tracks region’s labor history, industrial decline Maynard Seider, professor emeritus of sociology at the Massachusetts College of Liberals Arts, views the history of northern Berkshires through a labor lens in his new book, “The Gritty Berkshires.” Susan Sabino photo   By JOHN SEVENContributing writer NORTH ADAMS, Mass. When Maynard Seider arrived in the read more

    Northern Berkshires’ blue-collar lament