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HAPPY MAY DAY: A LETTER FROM NEU MEMBERS

This May Day, members of 34 OPEIU-represented nonprofit organizations are speaking up for worker rights. Click below to read their joint letter on International Workers’ Day.

On this May Day, the OPEIU members of Nonprofit Employees United (NEU) stand in solidarity with workers across the world fighting for collective bargaining rights and call for an end to employer-driven delay tactics during union contract negotiations. Started as a general strike and then a commemoration for the bloody Haymarket affair, International Workers’ Day is remembrance and a call for action. As nonprofit workers throughout this country, we know our fellow comrades work tirelessly to advance their respective causes and deserve good faith bargaining to secure their rights.

For far too long our bosses have told us our work at our respective nonprofits is a reward in and of itself. These same management meanwhile pay themselves a generous paycheck. We are told “we are a family” but families do not treat their members this way–even once they’ve won their unions and begin negotiations.

In the past few years America has seen a rapid rise in unionization, from Starbucks workers across the country to nonprofits in major cities. 273,000 workers joined unions in 2022 alone–an impressive increase thanks to new organizing across sectors.

Every worker deserves to be treated with respect, have a say in their workplace, and compensated with a living wage. Collective bargaining is the backbone of ensuring the rights and best interests of the workers are advanced and protected.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice are not just catch words used by our nonprofits. Nonprofit Employees United believe these crucial principles apply not only to our work but also in our relationships with management and each other. We cannot expect to overturn suffocating white supremacy, dismantle the horrors of capitalism, or seek a just society unless management works with their workers, not against.

We call on nonprofit management across the country to voluntarily recognize their unions, fire their union busting lawyers, and come to the bargaining table in good faith. Stop the delay tactics and efforts from bosses to drag on the negotiations process.

We encourage and welcome every nonprofit worker to join us in the labor movement and advocate for their rights. Everyone deserves to be fully compensated for their labor. We look forward to management fulfilling their end of the bargain and if needed we are ready to make our collective voices heard.

In Solidarity,

Nonprofit Employees United, OPEIU

SIGNATORIES:

OPEIU Local 2

  • Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA)
  • Defenders of Wildlife
  • International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES)
  • Leadership Conference for Civil and Human Rights
  • MADRE
  • National Democratic Institute (NDI)

OPEIU Local 39

  • Center for Responsible Lending (CRL)
  • La Casa Norte

OPEIU Local 153

  • American Jewish World Service (AJWS)
  • Anti-Violence Project (AVP)
  • BioBus
  • Community Solutions
  • Guttmacher Institute
  • INCLUDEnyc
  • RepresentUs

OPEIU Local 1010

  • Code for America (CFA)

OPEIU Local 12

  • Jewish Community Action
  • Minnesota Voice

OPEIU Local 29

  • Compass Family Services
  • GLIDE
  • Impact Justice
  • LYRIC Center for LGBTQQ+ Youth
  • New Israel Fund (NIF)
  • SF Marin Food Bank

OPEIU Local 251

  • Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project (FIRRP)

OPEIU Local 277

  • MOVE Texas

OPEIU Local 792

  • Disability Rights Ohio (DRO)

 

 

 

Nonprofit employees uniting to empower our
workplaces and strengthen our communities

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Who We Are

We are the union for nonprofit employees. NEU – Nonprofit Employees United – is a collective of thousands of non-profit union members. Members belong to the Office and Professional Employees International Union, AFL-CIO and work in nonprofit advocacy and social service organizations all over the country.

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Why Join NEU

Our members have improved their nonprofit workplaces by raising wages to help members afford to live in the communities they serve; securing better health care and paid leave benefits; creating systems for employee input and involvement to ensure more effective programs and services; negotiating for policies to make work safer and reduce burnout and more. We work to build strong labor standards to reflect the value of the work we do for the greater good of society.

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We’re Nonprofit Employees United

“One reason we formed our union is because employees who do our kind of work need greater respect and value from society. If more of us in social services were united and calling for better standards, we’d have even more power to make a difference.”

“On a daily basis we fight for the rights of our clients. Our union makes it easier for us to do this hard and rewarding work. We have benefits and an economic future we can depend on for ourselves and our families, which means we can afford to stay longer at a job we love. When morale and turnover improve, that helps our agencies do what they do best.”

“A voice on the job, transparency, consistent policies were some of the reasons we united in our own employee organization. We felt a union would empower us to advocate for ourselves in a productive and collaborative way, and be a positive force for our organization.”

Declaration of Nonprofit Worker Rights

Social service and housing workers provide the tools and support necessary to help everyone in our communities reach their full potential. Although it requires a unique set of skills and training, this work is most often characterized by substandard wages, benefits and working conditions that threaten the well-being of the workers and their families. We must build a foundation for minimum labor standards in this industry to reflect the value of the work and to strengthen our communities and hold our elected leaders accountable for providing necessary funding.

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Wages

Compensation must reflect median area income allowing workers to live in the community they serve, provide for themselves and their families, keep up with rising cost of living and stay in jobs longterm without having to rely on social services themselves. Longevity premiums should recognize years of service.

Minimum Staffing and Safety

Every shift in supportive housing and emergency shelters must be covered by a minimum of two qualified workers to provide as safe an environment as possible.

Training

Must be uniform and include basic safety and crisis prevention training immediately after hire, with additional trainings that prepare workers to deal with the practicalities of their positions and contextualize their clients’ lived experiences.

Traumatic Experiences and Self-Care

Vicarious trauma leads to compassion fatigue and burnout, contributing to high turnover.

  • Provide paid leave after experiencing a traumatic event to allow workers to recover without financial hardship.
  • Explore other solutions such as paid self-care leave, expanded access to mental health services through Employee Assistance Programs, gym memberships or other solutions.
Medical Insurance and Insurance for Families

All social service workers should be provided medical coverage that allows them to care for themselves and their families. Currently many workers must cover their children through Medicaid.

Retirement Benefits

Employer contributions to retirement plan that will allow workers to retire after a career in social service.

Just Cause and Grievance Process

Just Cause and a fair grievance process provide an accessible, fair method for conflict resolution in the workplace.

Seniority

Seniority protections provide a consistent, unbiased standard to act as the determining factor in decisions such as promotions, transfers, layoffs, and rehires.

Scheduling and differentials
  • In recognition of the burden it puts on a worker when their schedule changes unexpectedly, a pay differential for an unexpected schedule change or when a worker has to stay past the end of their shift.
  • Differential pay for evening, night, and weekend work.
Voice on the Job

Protect and honor the legal right of workers to organize to improve the standards in their work life.

Where NEU Members Work

5 Steps to Form a Union

1Talk to Co-workers/Gather Information

What issues do you care most about? Any common themes? Do other co-workers share your interest in exploring forming a union? Contact us for help getting started.

1Form an Organizing Committee of Representative Co-Workers

The Organizing Committee educates co-workers about the benefits of unionizing and your rights under the law, motivates others to take action with confidence, identifies common workplace concerns and helps plan how to build a strong union.

1Build Majority Support

Once your Organizing Committee is in place and you have a good plan, you’re ready to take action and make your campaign public by talking to all of your co-workers to make sure everyone has an opportunity to be involved. Cards or petitions are signed to show support for having a union.

1Make Your Union “Official” 

Now you can ask your employer to voluntary recognize your union or you can request the National Labor Relations Board to hold a secret ballot election.

1Win a Strong Contract

Once your union is official, you and your co-workers will negotiate a legally binding contract with your employer that puts in writing all terms of employment. When negotiations are over you vote to approve the contract.

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Questions about NEU? Ready to get started? Fill out the form below and a member of our team will be in touch shortly.