WeCodeKC offers educational training and mentorship to help Black and brown students from low-income neighborhoods break into the tech industry. Participants can learn different programming languages, build their own robots, work on cybersecurity projects, get help with internship and job searches, and more.

The Transition Academy connects people with mental and physical disabilities with helpful resources to increase their access to jobs and higher education. The group also connects families with resources, experiences, and knowledge to create a smooth transition out of high school for students with disabilities and provides a Facebook community for families to connect and share insights.

Generating Income For Tomorrow, or GIFT, works to foster economic prosperity and wealth in Kansas City’s Black community by providing grants to Black-owned businesses. Since its launch, GIFT has distributed $687,000 to 42 Black businesses and GIFT recipients have so far created more than 60 new jobs.

In a complex effort to increase morale among bus drivers and address worker shortages, the Kansas City Area Transit Authority has negotiated a new union contract with drivers and maintenance crews to increase their hourly wage. Through the new contract and intensified recruitment efforts, the KCATA has hired an additional 55 drivers, exceeding its goal of 45 more drivers by the end of this year.

The Sewing Labs provides apprenticeships that teach sewing skills as a route to jobs, financial independence and dignity. The Sewing Labs was recently chosen as one of 207 businesses to participate in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Apprenticeship Ambassadors Initiative to present an “earn and learn” model to create equitable and debt-free pathways to good-paying jobs.

To help support those affected by the devastating floods in 2021, several organizations are stepping in to help residents. Kentucky River Community Care provides mental health services and support for those struggling with trauma from the floods.

Local art businesses, like dance studios, record stores, and tattoo parlors, that have historically served as community centers for local creatives are working with community members to help rebuild their facilities after catastrophic flooding.

Several organizations, researchers, and area farmers alike are working to get local farmers back on track after catastrophic flooding in the summer of 2022 destroyed many farmers’ crops, tools, and homes by focusing on shifting toward more climate-resilient farming practices and providing resources like compost deliveries to help replenish soil.

The Alliance Psychological Services of New York is a worker cooperative- meaning it is owned by those working there and everyone is a part of the decision-making process. This model allows workers to choose more sustainable practices and workloads. They also have the freedom to better care for their clients with practices like sliding-scale-based payment.

The Block Island Wind Farm is an offshore wind farm that works to mitigate climate change and improve the state’s economy. The wind farm has created more than 300 jobs and provides an alternative to power sources that produce carbon emissions amidst increased demands for electricity.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers developed a framework called the worker-driven social responsibility paradigm, which is designed to help protect migrant employees who often don't have the right to unionize but are vulnerable to workplace manipulation and abuse due to their immigration status. The paradigm targets the supply chain, using legal agreements to require that migrant workers have a direct say in designing and enforcing workplace protections, and the model has been implemented in initiatives such as the Fair Food Program and the Milk With Dignity Program.

A California law is making it easier for firefighters trained while incarcerated to get the emergency medical technician licensing required to work at municipal fire stations once released. The new law helps formerly incarcerated firefighters expunge felony convictions from their records that would otherwise prevent them access to licensing.

The Town’s Equity Task Force works to advise the town on equity and inclusion strategies, specifically for the Latino population in the community. The task force presented seven recommendations to the Jackson Town Council in December, which were accepted, including recommendations like translating town signs into Spanish. Similarly, several local nonprofits have stepped up to serve Latino community members from literacy to food aid.

Fossil Lake, and its associated quarries, have provided small businesses in Kemmerer with ways to attract tourists and make a living as major industries, such as coal, has retreated in recent years. The businesses have all thrived by following different, non-competing business models, generating millions of dollars in revenue every year.

Career and Technical Education schools teach teens a mix of academic and technical requirements so they can choose to pursue a career in the trades industry upon graduation.

Fight Back, Inc. is a local community-based organization that worked to get construction jobs for Blacks, Spanish-surnamed, and other minorities in New York City over the years. The organization has been very effective in integrating the skilled and construction trades and ensuring workers of color have equal opportunity and has been replicated in other cities like Seattle and Detroit.

With help from national labor union Workers United, employees at Starbucks stores across the country are launching union campaigns in an effort to secure safer conditions and better pay. In all, 171 stores in 30 states have won union elections so far, and Workers United has filed to unionize at 302 stores in all.

The Nashville print-shop Music City Creative builds a welcoming working environment for the LGBTQ community through fair wages, using LGBTQ job boards, and including staff input when making company decisions.

Virginia’s G3 grant program helps cover education costs for students in the most in-demand industries in the state.

Businesses and initiatives across the country are looking to support employees, employers, and unions together. One example is the Ironworkers Apprenticeship Program, a paid training program that is open to anyone regardless of their skills or previous experience. At the end of the four-year program, participants are completely certified for the ironworking trade at no cost. In fact, program participants are able to earn money while they learn and set themselves up for union jobs that provide good salaries and benefits, while filling the growing number of ironworking jobs.

Powered by the ReCoast Initiative, Glass Half Full recycles glass to turn it into sand needed to replenish Louisiana’s coastline and regrow native marsh plants like various grasses and willow trees. The group also uses social media to explain topics like coastal erosion and the importance of restoration efforts like Glass Half Full to a wider audience.

In order to have more say and control of their utilities, the city rallied together to create a campaign to take over their local electricity distribution. This take-over has created city jobs for local residents that are more secure than those in the private sector and residents have also seen lower electricity rates.

Shelter JH is a local housing advocacy group that gathers members to work together to get better representation in housing-related decisions in the area. The group canvasses neighborhoods to recruit voters, speaks on housing bills at the statehouse and hosts meetings and educational sessions that connect people with local policymakers and housing opportunities. The group was formed in 2016 and now has about 550 members.

In Kansas City, the nonprofit Pawsperity trains parents facing financial instability to groom dogs. Students of the program learn the basics of dog grooming four days a week and like skills one day each week to help break the cycle of poverty and prepare them for a job in the field.

Zaddy Solutions is a staffing firm promoting diversity and inclusion by focus specifically on the LGBTQ community. The firm provides mentorship, education, and guidance.

The Carolinas LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce was originally formed as a safe space for LGBTQ+ business owners and professionals to network safely. The Chamber offers a combination of networking events, advocacy, and professional development opportunities designed to ensure members have access to the skills and training necessary to develop an equitable business community.

Labor union UNITE HERE represents 300,000 working people in the U.S. and Canada across multiple industries including hotels, food service, manufacturing, and more. The union's Sleep with the Right People campaign aims to support LGBTQ+ hotel workers, who are historically discriminated against in the workplace.

Reaching Out MBA's LGBTQ+ conference provides a space for LGBTQ+ business students to find a sense of community, learn from others in their field, and connect with companies specifically interested in hiring LGBTQ+ employees. In the past, roughly 90 percent of job-seeking attendees have been selected for coffee chats or interviews with recruiting companies, and about 27 percent have come away with job offers.

A San Francisco Bay Area loan program called the Black Wealth Builders Fund provides low-to-moderate-income homebuyers in black neighborhoods zero-interest loans to cover the down payment on their first home.

As a continuance of the Fight for $15 and a Union southern chapter Raise Up, the Union of Southern Service Workers is a first-of-its-kind, cross-sector union that offers membership to fast food, retail, warehouse, care, and other service industry workers across southern states. With Black women emerging as leaders, these organizations have built a multigenerational, multiracial labor movement that sheds light on the realities low-wage service workers have faced for decades.

The Just Income GNV project in Florida provides justice-impacted people with a guaranteed income for a year to help them get on their feet. All they have to do is fill out an application, get approved, and log their spending so the organizations running the program can track the results.

4 Day Week Global offers workshops, cross-company mentorship, and assistance with tracking productivity and employee wellbeing to help companies implement shortened workweeks. The nonprofit has piloted its program with 38 companies so far, and organizations that have switched to a four-day schedule report increased productivity and improved work-life balance for workers.

The Ban the Box campaign has led to legislation like New York's Fair Chance Act, which prevents employers from asking questions about conviction history during the application process and makes it unlawful to rescind an offer because of a previous offense. Ban the Box policies are now being implemented in cities and states across the country and have improved job prospects in places such as Washington, D.C., where the number of applicants with conviction records being hired grew by a third after the policy was put in place.

Desde 2006, el Centro de Trabajadores Southside de Tucson ha ayudado a cientos de obreros migrantes a enfrentar condiciones de trabajo peligrosos con un espacio seguro para coordinar trabajo y un equipo legal que lucha por los derechos y la protección de los inmigrantes. Con colaboraciones en la comunidad, el Centro tambien proviene una variedad de servicios cuando son necesarios, como talleres de idioma en inglés, entrenamientos sobre el liderazgo, y conectar a la gente con trabajadores sociales o de salud.

Detroit Public Schools is tackling chronic absenteeism by addressing the underlying reasons students are absent. Attendance agents work with families to address their needs and connect them to necessary resources like food, transportation, and school supplies.

The Kansas City nonprofit KC Can Compost is preparing people experiencing homelessness, formerly incarcerated men, and youth aging out of foster care for jobs in the environmental sector with its Green Core Training Program. Those enrolled in the five-week program learn about environmental issues, solutions, potential jobs, and necessary work and life skills before receiving a pre-apprenticeship certification.

Groups like the Mutual Aid – New Orleans Facebook group take a community-focused approach to disaster response and gather volunteers to deliver supplies to those in need in the aftermath of disasters like hurricanes and flooding. Frustrated by slow and oftentimes nonexistent government aid, these communities are taking matters into their own hands to effectively provide relief to fellow residents when disaster strikes.

In Monte Vista, Colorado, an elementary and a high school are improving teacher retention by building an environment that makes them feel heard, appreciated, and supported. The administrators take time to build relationships with teachers and students, check in with teachers on a regular basis, allow teachers to have a say in decision-making, and create teacher revitalization rooms.

When severe flooding hit Kentucky, the bakery at the Hemphill Community Center continued to pay its workers to do community support and flood recovery work instead of their typical jobs. The bakery is a recovery-to-work program for people facing addiction, so keeping their jobs and a sense of community helps them continue recovering despite stressful circumstances.

Shacks on Racks relocates houses and works to make homeownership more accessible to area workers. Since starting in 2016, the non-profit has relocated 21 houses. For those 21 saved houses, Shacks on Racks estimates they’ve spared landfills more than 1.2 million pounds of waste.

Tucson’s Southside Worker Center supports day laborers by offering a safe place for them to wait for employment and services like English-language workshops and connections to attorneys should they need help collecting past-due payments.

The COVID-19 pandemic shed light on, and exasperated, existing issues in Arizona’s healthcare industry. Medical staff are still dealing with the repercussions and are speaking up to demand better working conditions.

JobPath provides students at or below the poverty level in Tucson, Arizona, with money, mentorship, and soft skills training to help eliminate the barriers that keep them from finishing school.

New multilingual and multicultural education programs like the one at Arizona State University help prepare future teachers to meet the needs of Latino students and lessen the teacher-retention crisis in the state.