Arise Chicago is a left-of-center, faith-based worker center which organizes among primarily non-unionized workers in the Chicago area. The organization promotes unionization and left-of-center labor policy, leading demonstrations supporting policies including increased labor regulations, a $15 minimum wage, and increased “wage theft” protections. ^{1 2 3}

Though it is not a labor union itself, Arise Chicago has partnered with and promoted some of the most powerful left-of-center labor unions in the country, including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). ^{4 5}

Arise Chicago has recently supported sweeping pro-union legislation. In July 2021, leaders from Arise Chicago joined with 400 other religious leaders to urge U.S. Senators to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, a sweeping anti-market bill that seeks to negate state right-to-work laws, prevent employers from sharing information about the potential drawbacks of unionization, and allow the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to immediately reinstate fired workers. ⁶

History

In 1991, a group of religious leaders founded Arise Chicago to advocate for left-of-center approaches to poverty reduction. The organization quickly pivoted to labor activism. In the early 2000s, Arise Chicago created worker programs, including a nationally recognized apprenticeship program to place women and people of color into trades. The organization also began publishing its “Workers Rights Manual” which has been replicated by left-of-center labor organizations across the country. ⁷

In 2002, Arise Chicago opened the Arise Chicago Worker Center, through which it conducts most of its activity today. The center claims to have recovered over $6.3 million in improperly withheld pay and benefits for nearly 4,000 workers. ⁸ Through the center, Arise Chicago has worked to direct strikes and other protests among workers in support of left-of-center policies such as increased labor regulations and higher wages. ^{9 10}

Political and Organizing Activity

Arise Chicago has become known for supporting strikes and other demonstrations among both unionized and non-unionized workers. Arise Chicago primarily works to direct left-of-center campaigns and promote unionization among non-union workers in Chicago. ¹¹

The organization carries out most of its activities through the Arise Chicago Worker Center, which is affiliated with the left-of-center Interfaith Worker Justice. Aside from organizing strikes and other action campaigns, Arise Chicago hosts worker trainings on left-of-center organizing techniques and maintains a “workers’ rights manual” on its website. ^{12 13}

Wage Theft Advocacy

Arise Chicago rose to prominence when it supported three carwash employees in their campaign to recover wages from their former employer. In 2011, Arise Chicago filed a complaint on behalf of the workers with the Illinois Department of Labor, which ruled the workers’ favor. When the employer refused to pay, the Illinois Attorney General sued the employer, who then claimed bankruptcy. Arise Chicago eventually helped the employees to collect on the employer. ¹⁴

Over the years, Arise Chicago has involved itself in a number of wage theft disputes. In 2014, Arise Chicago organized weeks of striking among Golan’s Moving and Storage workers, alleging that Golan’s was committing “wage theft” for not paying them for preparation time. ¹⁵ In 2016, Arise Chicago supported a worker suing Dunkin’ Donuts for paying workers only for scheduled shifts and docking worker paychecks to make up for cash register shortages. ¹⁶

In 2018, Arise Chicago organized 25 employees who alleged wage theft at Taco Joint, a Mexican restaurant chain. The restaurant, which was forced to close one of its locations due to financial insolvency, allegedly pushed back worker paydays due to liquidity issues. Arise Chicago organized employees to picket in front of a location which remained open to demand backpay. ¹⁷

Much of Arise Chicago’s work on wage theft has inspired the implementation of left-of-center regulatory policy in Chicago. In April 2018, Arise Chicago organized in support of the establishment of the Chicago Office of Labor Standards, an organization designed to enforce left-of-center labor protections. Members of Arise Chicago accused employers of “systematically stealing wages” from women, immigrants, and people of color. The city gave into organizer demands and established the office in October 2018, with input from Arise Chicago used by city officials to develop the office. ^{18 19}

Arise Chicago’s work also inspired legislation in Chicago in June 2021 to implement stricter wage theft protections, create a left-of-center government-supported leave policy, and investigate chain restaurants and tipped wages. ²⁰

COVID-19 Activism

Arise Chicago supported left-of-center policy during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the early months of the pandemic, Arise Chicago encouraged essential workers to go on strike to protest allegedly dangerous working conditions. Arise Chicago wrote letters that groups of workers submitted to employers which said the employees were “going into quarantine,” leading to over 60 strikes by essential workers in April and May 2020. ²¹ Arise Chicago also created Facebook videos encouraging essential workers to demand certain conditions for a “safe return to work” that have garnered over 380,000 views. ²²

In August 2020, Arise Chicago supported a group of Catholic school teachers who refused to return to work that fall and called on the archdiocese to move school fully online. ²³ The effort was panned by critics, who alleged that Arise Chicago and the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) were pressuring private schools to remain closed in order to avoid pressuring public schools to open. ²⁴ When the archdiocese refused to comply, Arise Chicago arranged a protest and claimed that the archdiocese was “putting people in danger.” ²⁵

Arise Chicago also worked to vaccinate workers against COVID-19 during the summer of 2021, organizing “vaccine days” for its members alongside powerful labor organizations such as the SEIU. ²⁶ The organization also advocated for workers to receive priority in the vaccine distribution process, alleging that essential workers would further spread the virus if not vaccinated first. ^{27 28}

Immigrant Worker Advocacy

Arise Chicago has also supported left-of-center policy on immigration. In February 2017, Arise Chicago organized a rally in support of A Day Without Immigrants, which encouraged immigrants to skip work and school to protest right-of-center immigration policy. ²⁹

Two years later, in August 2019, 600 Portillo Restaurant Group employees organized a union after the chain received “no-match” letters from the Social Security Administration (SSA), which are sent to employers when an employee’s listed Social Security number does not match agency records. The practice often leads to the firing of illegal immigrants, who do not receive Social Security numbers. Bowing to pressure, Portillo rehired employees that were asked to voluntarily quit, and Arise Chicago helped Portillo restaurant employees to form a workplace bargaining committee. ³⁰ When the SSA announced an end to the practice of sending no-match letters in 2021, Arise Chicago praised the decision. ³¹

Larycia Hawkins Controversy

In December 2015, Arise Chicago supported Larycia Hawkins, a controversial college professor who was suspended from her tenured position at a Christian college for saying that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. Hawkins had also worn a hijab as a demonstration of “human solidarity” with Muslims following the San Bernardino shootings inspired by Islamist terrorists. ³²

The college offered Hawkins the opportunity to continue to teach under the condition that her tenure be revoked for at least two years, an offer which she declined while insisting she had “committed no offense.” Arise Chicago supported Hawkins, who also sat on the board of directors at the organization. Arise Chicago went so far as to field media requests on her behalf, claiming that she was the victim of “workplace injustice” and “attempts to push her to the margins.” ³³

Other Campaigns

In 2013, Arise Chicago was on the frontlines of the SEIU-controlled “Fight for 15” campaign to demand a $15 per hour federal minimum wage and easier unionization processes. While working with the campaign, Arise Chicago helped to organize strikes and support calls for a $15 federal minimum wage. ³⁴ In July 2021, when Chicago implemented a $15 minimum wage, Arise Chicago praised the measure. ³⁵

In November 2015, Arise Chicago supported a group of stagehands who were fired from the Riviera Theatre after attempting to unionize for higher pay under the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE). ³⁶ The following year, Arise Chicago supported worker efforts to negotiate with the theater’s parent company, Jam Productions, going so far as to enter the organization’s office and refuse to leave until police were called. The organization then announced that it would be filing charges with the NLRB alleging that Jam Productions refused to bargain with the union. ³⁷

In 2016, Arise Chicago organized 70 workers to walk out of their jobs at the National Pasteurized Eggs facility in Lansing, Illinois in support of higher wages and increased safety regulations. Following Arise Chicago’s actions, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) attempted to unionize the plant. ³⁸

In November 2020, Arise Chicago organized employees represented by the UFCW at a ReConserve food recycling plant to strike in order to demand higher pay and increased safety regulations at the factory. ³⁹

In July 2021, leaders from Arise Chicago joined with 400 other religious leaders to urge U.S. Senators to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, a sweeping anti-market bill that seeks to negate state right-to-work laws, prevent employers from sharing information about the potential drawbacks of unionization, and allow the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to immediately reinstate fired workers. ⁴⁰

Partnerships

Since its founding, Arise Chicago has frequently collaborated with other left-of-center and left-wing organizations to pursue its policy goals. In 2009, Arise Chicago participated in a rally against wars, militarism, and foreclosures and in support of the implementation of a government-controlled healthcare system. The event was attended by representatives from other far-to-radical-left organizations, including the Chicago Progressive Democrats of America, the Communist Party of Illinois, and the Chicago Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). ⁴¹

Arise Chicago frequently works with powerful, left-of-center labor unions as well. In 2012, Arise Chicago worked with the SEIU, UFCW, and CTU to organize Walmart warehouse employees to strike, costing Walmart over $8 million in lost productivity. ⁴² Arise Chicago has also marched in the annual May Day parade alongside unions like AFSCME, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and over 100 additional pro-organized labor organizations. ⁴³ Every Labor Day, Arise Chicago partners with the Chicago Federation of Labor for its “Labor in the Pulpit” series, which seeks to associate religious values with left-of-center policy on labor. ⁴⁴

In May 2020, Arise Chicago partnered with Oxfam America to organize worker events around May Day. The events were aimed at encouraging contributions and labor actions following celebrations. ⁴⁵

Funding and Leadership

In 2019, Arise Chicago reported $949,384 in revenue, $841,544 in expenses, and $656,694 in net assets. ⁴⁶ Arise Chicago is funded by left-of-center organizations including the Chicago Teachers Union Foundation,⁴⁷ the Chicago Community Trust,⁴⁸ the Needmor Fund,⁴⁹ the Driehaus Foundation,⁵⁰ the Woods Fund,⁵¹ the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation,⁵² and the Grant for Good. ⁵³

C.J. Hawking has been the executive director of Arise Chicago since 2007. Hawking has organized similar left-of-center faith-based worker centers in five U.S. cities, and she is a Methodist minister. ⁵⁴

Other Arise Chicago leaders have extensive ties to left-of-center labor organizing. Worker Center director Laura Garza previously worked for SEIU Local 1 and sat as a board member at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. Board members include Joy Rogers, a reverend who formally constituted the Fight for 15 campaign; Adrienne Alexander, a lobbyist for AFSCME in Illinois; and Brandon Johnson, a political organizer with CTU. ^{55 56}

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