Lead Organizer

SEIU Healthcare IL IN MO KS is a dynamic, action-oriented union of over 90,000 healthcare and child care workers throughout Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Kansas. We believe in a society defined by freedom and justice, where we can all have quality education, health care and jobs, and where we all can live a full and plentiful life of our choosing. SEIU HCIIMK’s mission is to organize together to build power and demand and win social and economic justice for our communities.

Purpose:

The Lead Organizer is responsible for developing teams of organizers and worker-leaders to implement HCIIMK’s internal and/or external field plan for an office, area, or division of the local. The Lead Organizer performs a wide range of duties that include staff management, member development and organizing workers through building organizations and committees of workers that can fight for a voice on the job and in their communities through collective action.

Location: Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Kansas

Duties and Responsibilities:

Lead Organizer performs a wide range of duties, which may vary according to the needs of the overall program or a specific campaign. Examples of those duties and responsibilities are listed below:

• Challenge and move workers to action
• Develop workers to ensure they have the chance to grow, learn and lead
• Lead, inspire, and motivate others, setting high standards of commitment and approach to the work.
• Accountable for leadership development, including mobilization, training, mentoring and development plans
• Accountable for membership density, growth and activity
• Take a lead role in building worker leadership structures
• Formulate and deliver with a team on short-term and long-term campaign and project goals
• Develop and lead campaigns with staff and leaders around workers’ issues that include escalating action
• Run team meeting, prepare and track turf, coordinate staff and leader work plans, debrief organizers and worker-leaders, and prepare reports
• Train, develop and mentor organizers and member-leaders
• Electoral and political organizing, including accountability to team COPE goals
• Articulate union priorities at outside tables (community, political, etc)
• Assess and make recommendations for working with allied organizations based on common interests.
• Supervise staff including participation in creation of staff development plans and corrective action
• Effectively communicate the Union’s vision and mission
• Other duties as assigned

Scope and Nature of Supervision:

The Lead Organizer must be able to organize their time and develop and carry out plans with minimal supervision. They must also be able to receive direction from and interact with their immediate supervisor and other coordinators/directors as needed.

Criteria for Evaluation:

The Lead Organizer will be evaluated on their ability and skill to lead a team to meet HCIIMK’s goals of mobilizing and developing worker leaders, and representing workers successfully. The Lead Organizer will be evaluated on their ability to develop and lead teams of staff and worker-leaders.

Working Conditions:

Lead Organizers may be required to work long and irregular hours and to work on weekends and holidays when necessary. Travel may be required and the Lead Organizer may work on remote campaigns for extended periods.

Other Expectations:

Lead Organizers are expected to lead by example. Lead Organizers must be able to work with racially and ethnically diverse staff and workers in both cities and in rural areas. They must be able to respect, learn from, and lead women, people of color and low-wage workers and others. All staff are expected to respect the processes of the organization and to work within the framework of the organization to resolve internal disputes and issues.

Key Qualification Criteria:

• Minimum of one (1) year of experience in managing teams of staff and worker-leaders on organizing campaigns
• Minimum of four (4) years of organizing experience
• A strong commitment to social justice and alignment to values of our union
• A belief in workers’ ability to organize and collectively bargain and achieve desired goals together
• Proven ability to effectively lead, inspire, train and develop experienced organizing staff and worker-leaders to plan key union organizing activities even in the face of employer and political opposition and intimidation (i.e. building organizing committees, member to member organizing, actions, etc.)
• Must be flexible and able to handle multiple priority projects simultaneously and meet established deadlines and remain accountable to leaders, senior staff, and organizational goals
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to write reports, facilitate meetings, and conduct trainings
• Sound interpersonal and communication skills including the ability to build teams with people from diverse backgrounds
• Proficiency in Word and PowerPoint, as well as working knowledge of spreadsheets and database software. Must be proficient in organizing databases (i.e. VAN)
• Strong knowledge and experience in organizing practices and principles, including campaign strategies and developing and implementing organizing and/or contract campaigns
• Experience in the legal, political, economic, and industry forces that impact worker organizing, including knowledge of labor laws relating to our industries
• Ability to demonstrate self-motivation, initiative, critical thinking skills, responsibility and productivity
• Valid driver's license, working automobile and valid auto insurance
• Bilingual (English/Spanish or English and another language of the membership) is a plus.

Salary and Benefits:

• Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience. Target compensation is $74,852 - $84,105. Organization paid benefits are included.

SEIU Healthcare Illinois & Indiana is an equal opportunity employer; people of color and women are encouraged to apply.