Meet Our New Student Intern Maya Sjoquist

We are excited to welcome University of Southern Maine senior Maya Sjoquist as our new student intern here at the Maine AFL-CIO. Sjoquist is an economics major who grew up in Connecticut, but her mother is from Harpswell so she has several relatives who work on lobster boats and at Bath Iron Works. Her father is the Director of Health for the Mohegan Tribal Health Department and her mother previously worked as a certified nursing assistant.

“I think some of the reason why I am so into workers’ rights is because of women like my mother who work in care industries," said Sjoquist. “My mom no longer works in the industry because she hurt her back and it’s just so physically demanding. It was such a fight just to get compensation for that injury and to get recognition for all of the hard work that she did in that position.”

Sjoquist originally wanted to study business and marketing, but switched her major because she wanted to have a more positive impact on people’s lives. Her economics professor, Michael Hillard, urged her to pursue economics. While reading “Beaten Down Worked Up: The Past, Present and Future of American Labor” by Steven Greenhouse for an independent study with Hillard, she became interested in the labor movement. Last September, Sjoquist started working as an intern at the Scontras Center for Labor and Community Education. She currently splits her time working as a server at Becky’s Diner in Portland and working on a number of projects for the Maine AFL-CIO. She says she is most excited about supporting the work of the Union Construction Academy of Maine pre-apprenticeship program.

Please join us in welcoming Maya!