List of alt-labor groups included in study
| Name | Headquarters | Year founded | Worker center?* | Geographic reach | State partisanship | Sectoral focus | Network affliation? | Total revenue (from most recent 990 available; last election year used for c4s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN) | Woodburn, OR | 1977 | Amalgam | state | blue | Agriculture | CPD, Allianza Poder | $403,781 (2018) |
| Arise Chicago | Chicago, IL | 1991 | Worker center | local | blue | multiple | $949,384 (2019) | |
| Somos Un Pueblo Unido | Santa Fe, NM | 1995 | Amalgam | state | blue | multiple | AFL-CIO | $1,067,276 (2019) |
| Pilipino Workers Center (PWC) | Los Angeles, CA | 1995 | Worker center | local | blue | multiple | NDWA | $960,570 (2018) |
| Make the Road New York (MRNY) | New York, NY | 1997 | Amalgam | local | blue | multiple | CPD | $24,939,711 (2019) |
| Chicago Workers’ Collaborative (CWC) | Chicago, IL | 2000 | Worker center | local | blue | Temp staffing | RTF | $839,208 (2019) |
| New Labor | New Brunswick, NJ | 2000 | Worker center | state | blue | multiple | IWJ, NDWA, NDLON | $532,053 (2017) |
| Workers Defense Project (WDP) | Austin, TX | 2002 | Worker center | state | red | Construction | IWJ, AFL-CIO, NDLON, CPD | $2,277,932 (2019) |
| Restaurant Opportunities Center United (ROC) | New York, NY | 2004 | Amalgam | multi-state | all | Restaurant | $5,727,743 (2019) | |
| New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice (NOWCRJ) | New Orleans, LA | 2006 | Worker center | state | purple | multiple | $1,898,871 (2020) | |
| WeCount! | Homestead, FL | 2006 | Worker center | local | red | multiple | NDWA, AFL-CIO, NDLON | $279,464 (2019) |
| National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA) | New York, NY | 2007 | Alliance | multi-state | all | Domestic work | own | $12,457,744 (2019) |
| El Centro de Igualdad y Derechos | Albuquerque, NM | 2009 | Other | local | blue | multiple | NDWA | $372,092 (2019) |
| Heartland Workers Center (HWC) | Omaha, NE | 2009 | Worker center | state | red | multiple | $1,706,997 (2019) | |
| Living United for Change in Arizona (c4) | Phoenix, AZ | 2010 | 501(c)(4) | state | red | multiple | CPD | $2,525,302 (2018) |
| Arizona Center for Empowerment | Phoenix, AZ | 2010 | Other | state | red | multiple | $915,057 (2019) | |
| United for Respect (UFR) | Oakland, CA | 2011 | Other | multi-state | all | Retail | CPD | $809,139 (2019) |
| Center for Popular Democracy (CPD) | New York, NY | 2012 | Alliance | multi-state | all | multiple | own | $28,906,156 (2019) |
| Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa (CWJEI) | Iowa City, IA | 2012 | Other | local | purple | multiple | IWJ, AFL-CIO | $182,663 (2017) |
| Needham Area Immigration Justice Task Force | Needham, MA | 2012 | Other | local | blue | multiple | MIRA | $1,300 (2019) |
| Adelante Alabama Worker Center | Birmingham, AL | 2014 | Worker center | local | red | multiple | NDLON | $548,444 (2019) |
| CPD Action (c4) | New York, NY | 2014 | 501(c)(4) | multi-state | all | multiple | $9,209,630 (2018) | |
| Make the Road Action (c4) | New York, NY | 2014 | 501(c)(4) | multi-state | purple | multiple | $1,958,884 (2018) | |
| Raise the Floor Alliance | Chicago, IL | 2014 | Alliance | state | blue | multiple | own | $1,732,015 (2020) |
| Workers Defense Action Fund (c4) | Austin, TX | 2014 | 501(c)(4) | state | red | multiple | $833,589 (2018) | |
| Acción Politica PCUNista (c4) | Woodburn, OR | 2016 | 501(c)(4) | state | blue | multiple | $682,866 (2018) | |
| Somos Acción (c4) | Santa Fe, NM | 2018 | 501(c)(4) | state | blue | multiple | $221,166 (2018) | |
| Worker Justice Wisconsin | Madison, WI | 2018 | Worker center | local | purple | multiple | IWJ, AFL-CIO | $114,000 (2019) |
Notes: The study was conducted between 2018 and 2021. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in person, and the author engaged in “direct observation” to the extent possible prior to Covid-19. Quotes from organizers in leadership roles are attributed when permission was granted. Because most worker-members discussed personal experiences—rather than focusing solely on “events (current or historical), views, etc.” not considered human subjects research by Northwestern University IRB—interviews with most members are considered “off the record” or “on background,” unless otherwise noted. Note that 10 groups explicitly self-identify as “worker centers” (Arise, CWC, New Labor, PWC, WDP, NOWCRJ, WeCount!, Heartland, Adelante, and WJW). Three are national or regional alliances of worker centers and other community-based groups (CPD, NDWA, and RTF). Four are “amalgams” that include worker centers (Somos, PCUN, MRNY, and ROC). Five do not self-identify as “worker centers,” but fighting for workers’ rights is central to their mission (El Centro, ACE, UFR, CWJEI, and Needham). Six are 501(c)(4) organizations that fight for workers’ rights and are affiliated with one of the above (CPDA, MRA, WDAF, Acción Politica PCUNista, Somos Acción, or LUCHA).