Update: April 16, 2021 – Management agreed to voluntarily recognize the Beacon Union, staffers announced today.
Staffers at Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative announced Wednesday that they have decided to form a union as part of the Minnesota Newspaper & Communications Guild.
As the organization has undergone significant growth in the past five years, workers said they have “experienced a culture that minimizes transparency in decision-making, limits cross-cultural community building, and discourages critical feedback from staff.”
This has resulted in unsustainable workloads and high staff turnover, and has limited Beacon’s ability to fulfill its responsibility to residents, donors, partners, and communities across the Twin Cities metropolitan area, they said.
By forming a union, Beacon employees aim to create a workplace culture that centers transparency, democratic leadership, and equity. They believe coming together with a collective voice is the best and only path toward shifting the balance of power in their organization, and creating opportunities for all Beacon staff to participate in organizational strategy and decision-making that shapes their every-day work.
Beacon staff also want to create a more inclusive workplace, where staff members of different races and cultures are valued contributors and leaders. Staff turnover has particularly affected workers who identify as Black, Indigenous, or people of color in recent years, as well as staff in frontline service positions. The Beacon Union intends to bring accountability to the organization’s publicly stated value of race equity, by implementing collective decision-making and advocating for equitable salaries and benefits.
Founded in 1999, Beacon has grown to be one of the leading affordable housing developers in the Twin Cities area. By providing shelter and housing, creating new affordable homes, and impacting policy, Beacon advances equitable housing as a collaborative of united faith communities.
Follow the group on Twitter @UnionBeacon.