Michigan Lead Organizer

United for Respect (UFR) and United for Respect Education Fund (UFREF) is a national organization building an industry voice of people working for the country’s largest corporations. Through scaled leadership development and base-building, UFR’s growing network is challenging major corporations and policymakers to provide family‐sustaining jobs for all working people. We leverage technology — social media, relational tools, and our digital platform, WorkIt — and bring the workforce into a shared community of support and advocacy. 

UFR/ED is seeking a motivated, dynamic Lead Organizer for Michigan to help grow the leadership of low wage workers that will help drive policy campaigns for economic and racial justice with a scaled activated base. Key initiatives that this position will be responsible for moving in Michigan include, but are not limited to: 

• Grow the leadership of working people at retail corporations and those employed as low wage workers by empowering workers to organize their workplaces and communities around public policy and corporate campaigns. 
• Our campaigns focus on raising workplace standards through winning a living wage, fair workweek, paid family leave, earned sick time, and holding corporations and Wall Street accountable; as well as equitable workplaces free of sexual harassment and racial discrimination. 

We encourage you to apply for this position if you are excited about worker and community empowerment and are passionate about investing time and resources into deep organizing and training. The ideal candidate excels at relationship-building, interpersonal communication, and leadership development. This position is housed in the Political and Policy Department and will work within the States Power Building Team at United for Respect.

Essential Duties:

• Build a base of low wage workers who will drive policy initiatives, actions and priorities in the state. 
• Develop and build leadership committees to drive public policy campaigns through an inclusive process that develops their organizing and advocacy skills, generates bold actions, moves policy makers and educates the public.
• Work with the staff and partners to organize actions, press events and prepare testimony for public hearings.
• Develop the leadership of working people to share their stories with each other and publicly, with the media and online.
• Participate in strategy development and planning to grow the state campaign program and advance advocacy priorities.
• Drive states field metrics to help reach campaign goals. 
• Support the development of state organizers. 
• Work in coalition with organizational partners in the state.  
• Other duties as assigned. 

Qualifications:

• Minimum 2-3 years of labor organizing experience, relational organizing experience strongly preferred.  
• Experience leading a team preferred. 
• Proficiency using digital tools. 
• Strong writing, research and communication skills. 
• Strong listening, persuasion and facilitation skills.  
• Ability to relate to and work with diverse groups of people as well as an understanding of the daily challenges faced by low-income communities of color.
• Ability to work independently, navigate obstacles, discern priorities, meet competing deadlines and handle multiple projects. 
• Strong willingness to learn, adapt, take feedback and implement changes in real time.
• Strong database management skills that inform analysis of the base and strategy.
• Ability to work varied hours including nights, weekends and holidays.
• Must have a car and be able to drive and maintain a valid driver’s license, and travel as needed on a regular basis.
• Ability to speak Spanish is a plus but not required. 

Competitive benefits package provided for full-time employees and eligible dependents, including health, dental, vision, and prescription coverage and 401k. 

Salary range: $55,000-$65,000 annually depending on experience. 

United for Respect is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and actively recruits people of color, women, individuals with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQI community. United for Respect provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training

Location: Michigan (remote)