Job Openings

Executive Director, Portland Jobs With Justice

Portland Jobs with Justice (JwJ) is a coalition of over 100 labor, faith, community, youth, and student organizations taking action for workers rights and economic justice with a racial and gender justice lens in the Portland Metro area.

Portland Jobs with Justice has operated as a long-term, formal coalition for over 30 years. Our lasting relationships help build the power needed to win real changes in the lives of working families and our communities. We seek out strategic fights that build power for working people and address the root causes of problems facing workers and communities. In recent years Portland JwJ has been integral in the fight to hold police accountable, supported grocery workers in their fight for better working conditions, joined essential workers across many industries through the labor struggles exacerbated by COVID.

The four areas of strategic focus being: direct action and solidarity, movement and power building, relationship building and engagement, and bringing forward new forms of worker organizing. Two continuous areas of work center racial justice and gender justice at their intersections with workers’ rights and economic justice and position us as leaders and innovators locally and nationally. This means, among other things, advancing racial justice in union contracts, and training working people – people of color, LGBTQ+ people, women, and young workers – in their rights at work and organizing and leadership development.

Portland JwJ is seeking an Executive Director to lead the organization in its next stage. The ideal candidate will excel at developing and implementing a strategic vision, building and maintaining relationships, marshaling resources, and building consensus among diverse stakeholders with different priorities as we work together towards a common goal.

This position reports to the Executive Board of JwJ and currently supervises three full-time staff organizers.

Job Responsibilities:

The Executive Director will lead Portland JwJ to win justice in workplaces and communities through:

Supporting and Supervising Staff:

Hire, evaluate, and terminate staff as appropriate in conjunction with the Board
Steward staff power/resources with skill, listening, and appreciation of organizer staff being union-represented
Provide consistent staff supervision
Lead ongoing organizational planning to support the development of staff work plans and goal setting
Identify opportunities for staff development

Administration, Fundraising, and Management:

Develop the organization’s annual budget and fundraising plan in coordination with the staff and Board
Raise the annual budget with the support of organizational leaders and staff
Build and maintain relationships with foundations and other major donors
Manage grant proposals and reports
Plan and lead implementation of annual grassroots fundraisers with leaders and staff
Financial compliance with all local, state, and federal reporting requirements and fees

Board and Leadership Cultivation:

Manage relationships, communication, and coordination of the Board with the support and leadership of Board Co-Chairs
Work with Board Co-Chairs to plan regular meetings, delegate responsibilities to Board members, and ensure follow through
Serve as the primary spokesperson for the organization; represent Portland JwJ to elected officials, the media, the general public, and at a variety of labor and community coalition tables
Work with Board and staff to recruit new organizational members to Portland JWJ

Campaigns and Programs:

Work with staff organizers and partner organizations to develop campaign and programmatic plans and strategy, and to choose new campaigns and programs when appropriate
Supervise organizing staff to track progress, evaluate, and problem solve

Required Qualifications:

The Executive Director will have:

A minimum of three years of relevant, paid experience in a leadership position at a nonprofit organization;
Outstanding leadership skills, and the ability to connect with and build effective teams of diverse partners across the community;
A strong commitment to and understanding of worker justice and the labor movement and diversity, equity and inclusion of people of color, women, young people, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants and refugees, and many other members of our communities;
The ability to promote an intersectional social justice framework and to articulate how systemic inequities impact workers of color, young people, women, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants and refugees;
Experience creating an equitable and inclusive environment where all people feel welcome;
Demonstrated skill and experience in developing campaign and program strategy, managing campaigns and programs, and helping others to mobilize coalition partners around campaigns;
Strong managerial skills and the ability to develop and implement an organizational vision;
Strong ability to develop and maintain relationships with funders;
The ability to mobilize grassroots support;
Demonstrated success managing multiple simultaneous projects and organizational needs;
Strong verbal and written communication skills;
Ability to provide oversight for finances and record-keeping.
Be in possession of a reliable/insured vehicle and valid driver’s license.

Term of employment: This is a full-time position. We are seeking someone to start December 2024.

Compensation: $80,000, fully paid individual health and dental benefits, generous leave policy.

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Candidates are strongly encouraged to submit their materials by Monday September 30th. To apply, please send a cover letter and resume, paired together in PDF format and titled with your last name and “ED” to jobs@jwjpdx.org. (Example of PDF title: Garcia ED.)

Portland Jobs with Justice is an equal opportunity employer. Black, Indigenous, and people of color, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ people, people from poor and working class backgrounds, and other marginalized identities are strongly encouraged to apply.

Communications Strategist, Jobs With Justice

Position overview:

Jobs With Justice is hiring a highly skilled and motivated communication strategist to join our team and make a difference in the lives of working people The Communication Strategist is broadly responsible for helping set and implement communication strategies to consistently articulate JWJ s mission, vision, values, and campaign demands in our communications, website, and public relations messages and materials. This position works closely with other members of the communications team and staff to create compelling content that educates, inspires, engages and informs a broad range of audiences about our programs and campaigns. This position reports to the communications director and is based in Eastern or Central time zones.

Primary responsibilities:

• Monitors the news and tracks editorial coverage of core labor issues within the media while looking for opportunities to include Jobs With Justice’s work within the headlines.

• Maintains the media relations database, identifies relevant reporters for campaigns, creates press lists, pitches stories and op-eds to media outlets, and coordinates media requests.

• Handles prep of the Executive Director, other staff and leaders for news interviews. Drafts and pitches op-eds for the Executive Director and staffers.

• Creates and executes communications strategies to support departmental work, such as new research reports and organizing efforts.

• Develops press releases, news materials, and organizational updates on the website for external audiences.

• Creates and executes short- and long-term media engagement campaigns to advance our issues and our experts.

• Drafts messaging for our campaigns, research publications, emails, staff speaking engagements, and events.

• Manages external media outreach, rapid response efforts and strategic communications.

• Conducts communication and messaging research for strategic initiatives and campaigns.

• Provide logistical support for media outreach and events. Coordinates preparing and disseminating communication materials.

Detailed areas of work currently include:

• Creates and executes earned media strategies to amplify Jobs With Justice’s work in the press.

• Manages responses to media inquiries while building relationships and advancing our issues.

• Proactively seeks media opportunities for staff and our issues through active pitching to reporters and multi-media producers. .

• Draft, edits and disseminates statements, press releases, fact sheets, and advisories.

• Conducts background communications research to support narrative change focus of the organization.

Qualifications:

At least 5 years of experience working in communications for non-profit organizations, progressive political campaigns, or unions. Required experience in the areas of:
- Messaging and narrative development on economic and racial justice issues
- Messaging and narrative development on economic and racial justice issues
- Driving press relations – writing press advisories, pitching press, maintaining relations with reporters, running press conferences, and broadly driving earned media
Maintaining web pages, social media sites and writing mass emails and texts
Experience using media tracking software such as Critical Mention or Muckrack
Experience creating or executing long and short-term media outreach plans
Experience tracking media impact metrics
Excellent communicator who can research and produce content under short deadlines on a range of topics and adjust to a range of styles and voices.
Good research and fact checking abilities.
Comfortable juggling multiple projects at a time and working in a fluid, fast-paced environment.
Outstanding writing skills, with an ability to digest everything from workers’ personal stories to complex legal issues and deliver them in powerful prose, appropriately shaped for numerous formats (e.g. speeches, press releases, op-eds, media pitches, etc.);
Ability and desire to collaborate and establish rapport with staff, colleagues and individuals from a wide variety of backgrounds.
Comfort in a team environment, and experience working in both a lead and support role.
Interest or experience in and knowledge of workplace and economic issues, labor, social justice, organizing, and/or progressive policy and advocacy issues.
Flexibility to travel as needed in performance of duties.

Location: This is a remote position based in the United States, with the option to work out of our Washington, D.C. office. Eastern or Central time zone work hours are required.

Physical Demands: Work is performed in a remote office setting with some travel required for in-person meetings or events. This role involves a long period of computer work. This position requires the ability to communicate with colleagues and partners via phone, video conferencing, email and other platforms.

Salary: This is a full-time position with a starting salary between $74,405-84,405 depending on experience and in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement.

Office Closures: Jobs with Justice Education Fund close for Summer and Winter Break. Summer closures are for one week. This year’s Winter closure will start December 23 and we will reopen January 3, 2025. Each August the office is closed on Fridays.

Benefits: Generous benefits package that includes paid vacation, fully covered medical, dental and vision insurance, and retirement benefits.

This is a union-represented position, represented by the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, CWA.

How to Apply: Submit your résumé, cover letter, relevant writing/digital samples and references to info@jwj.org. For references, please include a former supervisor.

Jobs With Justice Education Fund is an affirmative action employer and strongly encourages people of color, women, l/g/b/t/q individuals, those with disabilities, and those with working class backgrounds to apply. Frequently cited statistics show that people of color, women, trans, and non-binary people, as well as other structurally marginalized groups apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. JWJ encourages you to break that statistic and to apply. No one ever meets 100% of the qualifications.

If you need accommodation at any step of the process, please indicate on the application or contact our Human Resources team at hr@jwj.org with the Subject Line: Accommodation Request for Job Applicant.

Important notice for applicants: Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted. Please follow the job application instructions specific to the position you are applying for. Incomplete applications will not be considered. No phone calls or direct solicitations please.

Organizer, Jobs With Justice

Job Description

Jobs With Justice is a national network of local coalitions comprised of labor unions, worker centers, community, faith-based, and student organizations. We work locally and nationally to reduce inequality by expanding opportunities for workers to organize and to bargain collectively. The national staff provides strategic support to nearly 40 autonomous local coalitions, builds networks on common issues, shapes public discourse and leads strategic campaigns to build power for working people. Jobs With Justice is committed to winning real change for workers by leading campaigns that combine innovative communications strategies, solid research and policy advocacy, grassroots action, and coalition building.

Location: This is a remote position with strong preference given to candidates in the Washington, D.C., metro area.

Position overview:

The Organizer leads, develops and executes innovative and generative campaigns. In this role, the organizer mobilizes and supports other JWJ staff members, internal inter-disciplinary teams, local coalitions, national partners, and allies to expand worker organizing and bargaining and successfully advance the goals of Jobs With Justice. The Organizer is accountable to and supervised by the Organizing Director. This position can be based anywhere in the United States. An Organizer based outside the D.C. area may need to travel more to attend in-person staff gatherings at our D.C. office.

This position will support campaigns to:

Win and implement local/community standards on federal investments (BIL/IRA investments or industry investments like Electric Vehicles).
Hold corporate actors accountable by supporting worker democracy and community oversight of large employers.

Primary Responsibilities:

Leads in innovating, analyzing and testing emerging strategies to campaigns;
Executes campaign plans to win significant campaign victories that concretely improve workers’ lives;
Supports JWJ coalitions and partners to grow and develop more strategic approaches for local campaign work;
Develops the skills & leadership of local organizers in the JWJ network;
Is a supportive and flexible member of the JWJ national team;
Supports the JWJ Training Team in conducting nationwide trainings for JWJ coalitions and partners;
Supports the cultivation of resources/funding for campaign and program work.

Detailed areas of work currently include:

Active engagement in visioning, planning, and evaluating practices, both within the JWJ Organizing Department, and with coalitions and partners.
Coordination of a table of key stakeholders to carry out campaign plans.
Coordination of the network into strategic solidarity opportunities.
Providing targeted technical assistance to local coalitions and partners moving organizing and bargaining strategies.
Documenting relevant communications, activities, and outcomes.
Supporting training and development of local organizers.
Supporting opportunities to build new JWJ coalitions based on campaign work and related partners.
Collaborating broadly with JWJ staff to strengthen and win campaigns and strengthen local coalitions.
Identifying potential financial and in-kind support for current and potential campaigns.

Signs we are on track: A successful organizer

Contributes to the collective knowledge and disciplined practice of proven and emerging campaign strategies;
Develops and executes a variety of work to implement national and local campaigns, resulting in some victories, continuous learning and some experimentation and setbacks;
Develops and strengthens relationships with local coalitions, partners and others that could impact the success of a campaign;
Communicates about and documents work, outcomes, updates and developments in a timely and strategic way;
Successfully transfers knowledge and skill in order to builds the capacity of local coalitions and allies and win campaigns;
Effectively communicates and collaborates within the organizing department, throughout JWJ staff teams, and with local affiliates and partners;
Is accountable for and follows through on agreed upon work plans and actions;
Demonstrates the ability to coordinate inter-disciplinary teams and colleagues in a complex environment.

Qualifications:

Three plus years of organizing experience, with a particular emphasis on worker-related campaigns and projects.
Experience with creative direct action.
Ability to coach local leaders on sustaining long-term relationships through campaign work and strategy development.
Demonstrated commitment to racial justice.
Ability to work collectively, handle and resolve conflict, and facilitate groups
Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Self-motivated and strong work-planning, including good personal time management skills.
Understanding of and commitment to a broader working-class perspective.
Ability to travel as needed, average of 5 days per month with more travel required during peak campaign activity.

The ideal candidate will have:

Experience with Jobs With Justice, JWJ local coalition affiliates, or JWJ partners.
Labor movement/worker organizing experience
Multi-lingual fluency.
Experience using issue campaigns (policy fights, wage theft, etc.) to drive mobilizations
Ability to develop and lead trainings

Salary: Starting in the high $60,000’s and pending on years of experience as referenced within the CBA.

Benefits: Generous benefits package that includes paid vacation, medical, dental, and retirement benefits.

This is a union-represented position represented by the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, CWA

To Apply: Please submit a resume and cover letter to info@jwj.org

Organizer, Arizona Jobs With Justice

With the right experience, this position could be a Lead Organizer

Location: Phoenix, AZ

Organization Overview:

This unique position is a joint effort of Arizona Jobs with Justice (AZJWJ) and the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) union, District Council 36.

AZ JWJ is a coalition composed of local community organizations, labor unions, and faith leaders. We have a 34-year history in Tucson and are working to expand our base into Phoenix, Arizona through this position. We are committed to workers’ right to collective bargaining and bringing together faith, labor, community, and student organizations to fight for economic justice. The work of AZ JWJ is bringing together worker leaders and advocates to the center of grassroots organizing, coalition building, popular education, and storytelling. We use community organizing strategies to build programs and win campaigns that have concrete impacts and victories for working families.

IUPAT-DC36 is the regional council that oversees the Phoenix area, including IUPAT Local 86 where this position will be based. IUPAT is the leading labor resource for Paint, Drywall Finishing, Floor Laying, Glazing, Tradeshow, and Sign & Display workers in one of the most diverse labor unions across the country. Outside of their work to recruit and support workers to negotiate for strong wages and working conditions, IUPAT-DC36 and their locals collaborate with fellow unions, community groups, and other key stakeholders to create leverage in the permit process for the inclusion of project labor agreements and community benefits and workforce agreements. IUPAT Local 86 is an active member of Arizona Jobs with Justice.

Position Overview:

Arizona Jobs with Justice and IUPAT-DC36 share the vision of building power for working people across the Phoenix area. For both of these organizations that means ensuring that the voices of workers are uplifted and they are given the skills and empowerment to lead a movement that ensures their workplaces, the economy, and government policies enable them and their families to thrive.

Two of the country’s largest semiconductor (microchip) manufacturing plants are preparing to open in the Phoenix and surrounding area. IUPAT Local 86 represents workers at one of these locations, and our partners in the AZ Building Trades represent workers at the other. The semiconductor industry has a notorious track record of being anti-labor, causing significant and lasting environmental damage to the environment, and causing severe health impacts to both workers and local residents due to the heavy toxins used in the manufacturing. IUPAT and AZJWJ are members of the national coalition CHIPS Communities United, an organization dedicated to ensuring all semiconductor jobs are union jobs that provide a quality livelihood for all workers and their families and that semiconductor companies are adhering to the highest standards to protect workers and communities from toxins.

This position will support meeting the goals of:

Supporting IUPAT workers of local 86 in identifying workplace issues and aiding any that may be eligible for Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement;
Providing community education and engagement on the impacts of the semiconductor industry and identifying activists, advocates, and allies;
Working with CHIPS Communities United (CCU) and connecting local impacted community members and workers to the national campaign and their actions/events;
Using advocacy, corporate campaigns, grassroots lobbying, decision-maker education, and media campaigns to win commitments from semiconductor companies to meet community needs;
Building relationships with various community organizations, community leaders, labor unions, and people impacted by our work to expand AZ Jobs with Justice’s labor-community coalition in Phoenix and build a campaign coalition concerned with the current practices of the local semiconductor industry.

Job Responsibilities:

Join workers on worksites, do house visits, and attend worker meetings to engage them on their workplace issues and the semiconductor campaign activities.
Assist in developing and implementing an organizing strategy around the semiconductor industry in Phoenix.
Build and maintain relationships with local community organizations, labor unions, and community leaders (one on ones, attending community meetings and events, attending worker/union actions).
Recruit, train, and support workers, volunteers, and allies to participate in our organizing campaigns and turn out for CCU and or local worker actions/events.
Mobilize workers to share their stories and lobby elected officials and/or government agencies on their issues, demands, or in support of specific policies.
Use social media platforms to build campaign reach and capacity.
Work with the local media and news outlets to amplify the concerns of workers/community, particularly around the semiconductor industry.
Build and maintain a database of contacts and JWJ Pledge Signers (activists).
Support IUPAT Local 86 in their program to support workers eligible for Deferred Action for Labor Enforcement.
Represent the position and demands of AZJWJ, IUPAT, and CCU.
Prepare and manage weekly and monthly plans and calendars.
Inform AZJWJ and IUPAT supervisors and AZJWJ coalition of activities, developments, and progress of organizing activity and the semiconductor campaign locally.
Occasional support of IUPAT activities, as needed and within a reasonable amount of time each week.

Required Qualifications:

Bilingual: Fluency in both Spanish and English
Strong commitment to social justice and the labor movement
2+ years experience in any of the following: coalitions, workers’ rights, community organizing, political organizing, and/or labor union organizing
The ability to develop and lead organizing campaigns
Intimate knowledge about Arizona; particularly in the Phoenix area if possible
Coalition experience or bringing various stakeholders together around a common goal
Experience learning the stories of people impacted by particular issues and empowering them to share their stories and collecting stories for actions/events
Experience organizing people to win policies, workplace improvements, or other victories
The ability to work independently and as a collaborative team member
Ability to work nights and weekends regularly
Current Arizona driver’s license and insured vehicle

A great candidate will have two or more of the following:

Experience working with the immigrant community and/or on immigrant rights’ issues
Experience working with parents, teachers, and school districts/school boards
Experience working with unions, bonus if experience supporting women in the trades and other workforce development programs
Knowledge and experience of working with the press (preparing others for interviews, writing letters to the editor, drafting press releases, engaging the media)
Experience working with elected officials and or state/federal agencies

Terms and Compensation:

This is a full-time position, 40 hours a week Mon-Friday, Flexible to work evenings and weekends.

$75 – $95k Depending on Experience. Full medical, dental and vision, access to retirement benefits, paid sick and vacation. Some travel for trainings/conference may be required, which will include reimbursement for all mileage, travel expenses, lodging and meal per diems.

How to Apply: Send your resume, a cover letter, and a writing sample to info@jwj.org with the subject line “AZJWJ Organizer Application”.

Applications will be taken on a rolling basis, but we encourage applications to be in by September 20^th.

If you have questions, you can contact Mara Ventura from Jobs with Justice at mara@jwj.org, Steve Valencia from Arizona Jobs with Justice at jwjsv690@gmail.com, or Robert Smith with IUPAT at robert.smith@dc36.org.

Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Statement

We are an EEO/affirmative action employer and encourage applications from all qualified candidates regardless of race, ethnicity, age, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, or disability. We work to ensure fair treatment of applicants and employees and actively enforce zero-tolerance policies against discrimination and sexual harassment. Those who identify as persons of color, women, veterans, or formerly incarcerated persons, and/or have had experience working with one or more of those groups are strongly encouraged to apply.

Executive Director, Portland Jobs With Justice

Communications Strategist, Jobs With Justice

Organizer, Jobs With Justice

Organizer, Arizona Jobs With Justice

Current Openings