Media Relations & Communications Director

One Fair Wage is an organization seeking to raise wages, enhance working conditions in the service sector and end all subminimum wages in the United States.

This is a racial justice and gender justice-forward organization. Restaurant workers are legally paid a subminimum wage in the United States as a holdover policy from slavery. Tips are supposed to make up the difference, but having to rely on customers’ tips to pay rent subjects women restaurant workers to the highest rates of sexual harassment of any industry in the nation. The pandemic only made the injustices in the industry worse and in the Great Resignation that followed, millions of workers refused to work for subminimum wages. Employers raised wages to recruit and retain staff and the political landscape for our movement changed dramatically. In the last two years alone, Washington, D.C., Chicago and the state of Michigan have all moved to One Fair Wage — a full, fair minimum wage with tips on top.

Nevertheless, our movement remains fiercely opposed by a well-funded corporate restaurant lobby — that has often clouded the discourse with disinformation. For One Fair Wage, our power is in our people — in the movement of restaurant workers demanding change. We need to tell their story and spread our message.

The Opportunity

One Fair Wage is hiring a Communications Director to manage the organization’s public relations, narrative, branding and social media efforts.

We are looking for a Communications Director with high-level experience thinking about media strategy and framing in the context of grassroots policy campaigns. The successful candidate will have demonstrated success building relationships with and crafting effective pitches for both state and national print and TV media — thinking about how to create moments that get press, and thinking about how to turn press into impact. Yes, social media is an important part of this job but we are looking for a well-rounded communications director with depth of experience around traditional media.

The ideal candidate for this position will be creative and clever — bringing relevant experience to the role but also a sense of strategy and scrappiness, willing to think out of the box and be entrepreneurial around media and digital engagement. We’re also looking for a candidate who thrives in the fast-paced energy of campaigns and brings a can-do fun spirit to work.

This is a full-time remote-work position, with some travel required.

Duties and Responsibilities

Below is a sense of the roles and responsibilities for this position as it is currently configured, but we’d be looking for the person we hire to re-evaluate our priorities, think about the configuration of our internal team and consultants, and make other strategic decisions as part of their leadership. The way the job has been done isn’t necessarily the only way the job can be done and we’re looking for a creative, entrepreneurial leader who can help us build a winning communications operation.

Earned media

1. Conceptualize, frame and pitch earned media stories in print, radio, TV, etc., with a sense of how to jump on news or create newsworthy actions or campaign moments to get press.
2. Identify and build relationships with key reporters, editors, producers, hosts, and columnists in our issue/campaign areas.
3. Generate ideas for op-eds, feature stories, and other proactive coverage and effective branding/positioning media
4. Update and enhance CRM to improve press outreach/blasts and media story tracking

Culture and narrative shift

1. Be involved in articulating the narrative shifts necessary to advance One Fair Wage agenda and helping develop creative tactics to spread that narrative — including but not limited to public art, celebrity events, social media mobilizations, direct actions, etc.
2. Help define and advance branding and voice for organization/campaigns and implement style guidelines across departments
3. Shape One Fair Wage core messaging and train staff, consultants and grassroots members on message delivery..

Digital communications

1. Work with web design consultant to keep the One Fair Wage website up-to-date (including key press links) and refresh/redesign as needed
2. Develop strategy and metrics for One Fair Wage social media and supervise social media staff and consultants to develop and implement creative impactful posts/content
3. Lead on creating and distributing digital toolkits to promote actions, events, films, and other One Fair Wage activities
4. Working with team, conceptualize and write email blasts for members, activists and donors
5. Craft and implement digital strategy for policy campaigns, actions and events and work with staff, members and partners to implement effectively

Organizational leadership

1. Participate as part of the OFW Management Team
2. Lead communications strategy and planning for organization, including working with department leads on a comms strategy based on their priorities, and OFW state targets.
3. Supervise all communications support consultants, including regular check-ins and updates
4. Set overarching comms themes and targets with ED of OFW.

Evaluation

1. Regularly track communications processes, pilot new tactics, and modify existing strategies based on results
2. Develop evaluation templates to create and share “snapshots” of our progress.

Qualifications

• Ideal candidate would have at least 10 years of experience in non-profit or campaign communications, with a proven track record of impact and out-of-the-box thinking — and either have worked in a director-level capacity or ready to level up
• We’re not looking for a shrinking violet who waits to take direction from others but rather a creative innovator who generates strategy and ideas and jumps out of their seat to give input and take action
• The ideal candidate should have experience both designing communications strategy — with a strong demonstrated focus on earned media, including framing and pitching stories to print, TV, radio, etc.
• The ideal candidate will have facility with social media, email/digital, etc., and a vision for how all forms of communications work together in a comprehensive strategy.
• We’re looking for someone who understands all facets of a policy campaign communications plan at a high-level but also can roll up their sleeves and get it done.
• Additional qualities we’re seeking in a candidate include creativity, an ability to juggle a high volume of competing demands, attention to detail, and a willingness to proactively ask for help and input from others.
• As an organization, we are committed to hiring leaders who are trustworthy and genuine — and who build authentic relationships across lines of difference, such as race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, ability, gender identity, citizenship status, or other identities.

Salary and benefits

One Fair Wage can offer a salary in the range of $110,000 or more based on experience, medical and dental benefits, as well as a very capable and motivated team to work with.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity in our organization. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status and will provide reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.

Former service workers, women, and people of color are encouraged to apply. Please submit a resume and cover letter, highlighting your media relations experience, to saru@onefairwage.org.