Workers at Avodah, a national Jewish social justice organization, have ratified their first union contract with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, securing major wins for equity, stability and worker power.
Avodah develops Jewish leaders for social justice through the Jewish Service Corps, the Justice Fellowship, and other community-based programs across the country. Now, with this first contract, the staff empowering that mission has won strong, enforceable protections that ensure fairness and respect in the workplace.
The new four-year agreement covers roughly two dozen workers. Highlights include:
- Just cause protections and progressive discipline policies
- A 38-hour work week, early Friday closings, and expanded Jewish and federal holidays
- 20 vacation days and 12 sick days each year
- 12 weeks of paid parental leave and paid sabbaticals
- Salary floors ranging from $60,000 to $118,450, plus guaranteed 3% annual cost-of-living adjustments
- $40 monthly stipends for phone, transit, and remote work expenses
- Freedom to engage in political activities outside the workplace without fear of retribution
- Layoff protections including notice, severance pay and extended healthcare coverage
- Annual racial justice training with union input, plus strong anti-discrimination and equity protections
- The right to bargain over new policies and attend board meetings for greater transparency
- Employer-paid scrubbing of employees’ personal data from broker websites for safety and security
“The Avodah Staff Union is beyond thrilled to ratify our first contract, joining a growing community of unionized Jewish nonprofits and taking our place in a long lineage of Jewish labor organizing,” said Lauren Fine, the Alumni Manager at Avodah.
“We’re proud of the protections we’ve secured for our unit and the ways we made bargaining work for us in our nonprofit context. This was a collective effort, with every unit member drafting contract language and many leaders reviewing counters and joining bargaining. We celebrate in deep appreciation for all of the labor that made this possible.”
Avodah management also released a joint statement with workers saying, “Together, we celebrate in deep appreciation for all of the labor that made this possible on both sides of the table. This contract is part of our commitment to building a more just and equitable world and promoting a work culture we can all be proud of.”
Avodah workers won voluntary recognition of their union on March 23, 2022. With this first contract, they are fighting for higher standards for nonprofit workers nationwide –– showing what’s possible when staff organize and win together.