New American Leaders Staff Unionizes

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Katie Barrows, NPEU, kbarrows@npeu.org, 360-624-6936

NEW YORK, Sept. 9, 2020—The Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU) is happy to welcome the staff at New American Leaders (NAL) to our growing family of nonprofit workers. The NAL Workers United staff made a formal request to NAL management for voluntary recognition on September 8, and looks forward to reaching a formal agreement.

NAL is an organization that works to build a movement for inclusive democracy by empowering first and second generation Americans to run, win, and lead. NAL supports a network of over 1110 training alumni, and over 300 New American elected officials across the nation. NAL is rooted in the values of accountability, inclusivity, authenticity and community. 

NAL Workers United, along with NPEU, releases the following statements:

"We believe that unionizing is integral in the fight to eradicate the oppressive structures of white supremacy, systemic racism, and capitalism. We see unionizing as a way to live our progressive values internally; a union will help us use democratic principles to root out white supremacy, colonialism, patriarchy, heterosexism, ableism, and classism within the workplace, which will only strengthen our ability to serve our communities better and with more authenticity. Through our union, we hope to address and improve staff retention and solidarity; enhance diversity by incorporating the ideas of a wide array of staff members whose skills and lived experiences reflect NAL’s broader audience; provide a principled, restorative approach to workplace conflict; boost morale by fostering a work-life balance and a sense of dignity and respect in the workplace; and build lasting infrastructures for organizational accountability, democracy, and transparency."

“Congratulations to the workers of New American Leaders on forming their union, NAL Workers United! We are so proud to welcome them to NPEU, ” said NPEU President Kayla Blado. “We hope their management quickly recognizes NAL Workers United and begins a collaborative relationship with their staff’s union. Having a union will help NAL create a more democratic workplace, which in turn, will help them achieve their mission of a more inclusive American democracy. ”

About NPEU:

The Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU) is a local of IFPTE and represents professionals employed at more than 30 nonprofit organizations (and counting), including employees at Economic Policy Institute, the Center for American Progress, and Community Change. With several hundred members, NPEU gives nonprofit workers a voice to strengthen their workplaces and continue to do work that makes a difference in people’s lives.