WE Innovate Labor Leadership

We Innovate Labor Leadership Empower (WE) is a bold and ambitious initiative to identify, nurture, train, educate, and convene a new generation of labor leaders. WE create and build on research on gender and racial justice for a broad, multi-pronged approach to leadership development. WE engage new and non-traditional worker justice leaders at multiple stages through interwoven programming.

The Apprenticeship Program educates and inspires the next generation of labor leaders. It places recent college graduates and rank-and-file workers with host sites for three to twelve months, with a concentration in organizing, research, communications, and policy. Each apprentice has a mentor both internal and external to the host site.

The WE Innovate Fellowship gives practitioners the time and support they need to develop new ideas for advancing social and economic justice in today’s transforming economy, especially on issues that impact workers and organizing. The program includes robust mentoring support and allows practitioners to benefit from university resources.

There are two Cohorts of Learning & Mentoring: one for next-generation leaders, in the early stages of their work life, and another for experienced leaders ready to advance. Both groups will benefit from individualized leadership plans, cohort gatherings, a dynamic mentorship program, and curated trainings.

For more information on the Apprenticeship Program, the WE Innovate Fellowship, Emerging and Executive Leaders Programs  visit the WILL Empower website.

WILL Empower is a joint project of the Kalmanovitz Initiative and Rutgers University’s Center for Innovation in Worker Organization. It is the legacy project of the Berger-Marks Foundation.