The Inter-religious Network for Worker Solidarity is a national movement of clergy, faith leaders, and individuals from diverse faith traditions who stand in solidarity with the labor movement. Our shared values of deeply rooted faith, human dignity, equity, racial justice, interconnectedness, and liberation for all workers move us to organize for worker justice. We are committed to leading and learning, supporting and building, and organizing and advocating alongside workers, faith communities, worker organizations, and unions.
This work has never been more urgent. Despite strong majority support among Americans for unions, only about 1 in 10 workers currently enjoy the benefits of the “union difference”– higher wages and health benefits, good working conditions, and the ability to collectively bargain. In order to win, we believe it is critical to build long-term strategic alliances between labor, faith, and community that can mobilize huge numbers of people. Historically, partnerships between labor and faith have led to transformative victories for working people, people of color and women. Today, the vast majority of people (69% as of 2021) still belong to a major religion, and most projections show that even by 2070 a majority of people in the US will belong to a religious tradition. We know that institutions of faith have massive bases of people, and wield significant political power within our cities and states. IN4WS seeks to organize, recruit, and train faith leaders to stand at the forefront of an intersectional movement for workers rights.
To educate, convene, and mobilize people of any religious or spiritual tradition who stand in solidarity with unions, worker centers, and all working people.
IN4WS, in partnership with Bargaining for the Common Good, the Center for Innovation in Worker Organization, and the Wendland-Cook Program in Religion and Justice, is initiating the Spirit and Solidarity Organizing Program in order to train the next generation of clergy. The “Spirit and Solidarity” program will provide seminary students and faith leaders with organizing, movement-building, and theological skills at the intersection of the faith and worker-justice movements. Drawing on the tradition and lessons of Union Summer and Seminary Summer programs that trained prospective organizers and faith leaders in the nuts and bolts of organizing, a national team of experienced labor and interfaith organizers and organizational partners are coming together to begin a renewed practice of education, training, and critical analysis to incubate and sustain new organizing and solidarity work for our twenty-first century context.
The work of faith and labor has a long history in the United States, and yet, too often justice-minded faith communities and labor organizations work in silos. The integrative approach of Spirit and Solidarity Summer recognizes the need for more opportunities for bringing religion and labor together in theory and practice. Spirit and Solidarity Summer will not only educate participants about the worker justice landscape (unions, worker centers, and cooperatives, how they work, why they matter), train people on basic relational organizing skills like one-on-one conversations, coalition building, and congregational/community engagement, but also provide a deeper theological, political, and economic analysis that can sustain the work for the long-haul.
The inaugural Spirit and Solidarity Summer will take place during the summer of 2024, and will be held in Nashville, Tennessee, with the campus of Vanderbilt Divinity School as the hub. The training will examine and provide training on a variety of topics, including:
• The worker justice landscape
• Key organizing skills
• One-on-one conversations
• Coalition building between faith and labor organizations
• Campaign development and strategy
• Congregational and community engagement
• Theological, political, race, gender, and economic analyses of workers’ rights and power
Our network seeks to partner with unions and worker centers to support contract fights, new organizing campaigns, policy fights, and other local and national campaigns for workers rights. We seek to move beyond the “rent-a-collar” model, and to build long-term strategic alliances with unions to win bigger and broader campaigns.
• Leverage our national network of faith leaders to support local and national workers rights campaigns
• Connect local faith leaders with local labor leaders to build long-term strategic alliances and support ongoing workers rights campaigns
• Take action in support of workers rights campaigns: including clergy sign-on letters, letters to the editor, prayer vigils, rallies, and other actions
• Invite organizers and union members to speak at our monthly national call to educate faith leaders about important workers rights campaigns happening around the country
To educate, convene, and mobilize people of any religious or spiritual tradition who stand in solidarity with unions, worker centers, and all working people.
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