More Perfect Union Action is a pro-labor-union advocacy group affiliated with the More Perfect Union Foundation. Together, the two organizations publish the More Perfect Union news website, which is geared to building up support for labor unions and other left-of-center causes.

The news outlet was formed by an advisor to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The news outlet, while not officially a part of Sanders’s political operation, does share common goals and political viewpoints, including seeking to increase labor union membership, to build support for the political views promoted by labor union leadership, and to criticize American business. The news outlet also is geared towards pushing President Joe Biden further to the left. ¹

Overview

More Perfect Union Action is a pro-labor advocacy group affiliated with the More Perfect Union Foundation. Together, the two organization publish the More Perfect Union digital news website, which is geared towards building support for left-wing causes. ²

The More Perfect Union news website was formed in February 2021. The media outlet has a major focus on video and social media. The news organization has recorded videos of employees of large corporations such as Amazon, Frito-Lay, and Kellogg’s working in allegedly unsafe conditions. Published on social media websites such as Twitter, these videos have at time generated more than two million views. The news outlet also maintains a steady presence and large engagement on the video-sharing app TikTok. ³

The website was founded by veterans of the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). The news outlet, while not officially part of Sanders’s political operation, does share many views with Sanders. In addition, one of the founders of the website remains an advisor to Sanders. ⁴

Faiz Shakir, founder and executive director of More Perfect Union, said that he modeled the group in part on ThinkProgress, which he had previously run at the Center for American Progress Action Fund.⁵

Advocacy

In March 2021, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain tweeted a More Perfect Union video that showed efforts to unionize an Amazon warehouse in Alabama. The retweet of the video came shortly after President Biden announced his support for unionization efforts at that warehouse. ⁶

The organization highlights advocacy projects in which its readers and viewers may wish to participate. Among them are opposing mergers such as the one proposed by supermarket chains Kroger and Albertsons and supporting increased unionization. ⁷

Leadership

Faiz Shakir is head of More Perfect Union Action. Shakir is the former campaign manager for the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). He is a former employee of Think Progress, the defunct media outlet run by the Center for American Progress. Shakir modeled More Perfect Union as a digital version of Think Progress with an emphasis on videos and graphics. ⁸ Sharkir is also the former political director of the ACLU and worked in the office of former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). ⁹

Malea Stenzel Gilligan is another Sanders 2020 alum who works for the organization. She has also worked on numerous left-of-center causes such as Vote Vets, National Wildlife Federation, and the campaign of the late U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone (D-MN). ¹⁰

Nico Pitney is a former top editor of the Huffington Post and NowThisNews. ¹¹

Finances

In 2022, More Perfect Union Action reported raising $1,396,984 in total revenue, incurring $1,249,889 in total expenses, and having $1,046,381 in net assets.¹²

In 2021, the Open Society Policy Center gave More Perfect Union Action $500,000 “to support policy advocacy on worker’s rights.”¹³

1. Markay, Lachlan. “Sanders’ Campaign Chief Is Running a New Media Startup Aimed at Pushing Biden to the Left.” Axios. March 11, 2021. https://www.axios.com/2021/03/11/sanders-shakir-biden-media-startup.
2. “About.” More Perfect Union. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://perfectunion.us/about/.
3.  Smith, Ben. “Why the Media Loves Labor Now.” New York Times. November 7, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/07/business/media/labor-unions-media-coverage.html.
4.  Markay, Lachlan. “Sanders’ Campaign Chief Is Running a New Media Startup Aimed at Pushing Biden to the Left.” Axios. March 11, 2021. https://www.axios.com/2021/03/11/sanders-shakir-biden-media-startup
5. Lachlan Markay. “Sanders’ Campaign Chief Aiming to Push Biden Leftward.” Axios. March 10, 2021. Available at: https://www.axios.com/2021/03/11/sanders-shakir-biden-media-startup
6. Markay, Lachlan. “Sanders’ Campaign Chief Is Running a New Media Startup Aimed at Pushing Biden to the Left.” Axios. March 11, 2021. https://www.axios.com/2021/03/11/sanders-shakir-biden-media-startup.
7. “More Perfect Union: More Perfect Union.” The Action Network. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://actionnetwork.org/groups/more-perfect-union.
8. Markay, Lachlan. “Sanders’ Campaign Chief Is Running a New Media Startup Aimed at Pushing Biden to the Left.” Axios. March 11, 2021. https://www.axios.com/2021/03/11/sanders-shakir-biden-media-startup.
9. “About.” More Perfect Union. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://perfectunion.us/about/.
10. “About.” More Perfect Union. Accessed December 5, 2022. https://perfectunion.us/about/.
11. Smith, Ben. “Why the Media Loves Labor Now.” New York Times. November 7, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/07/business/media/labor-unions-media-coverage.html.
12. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). More Perfect Union Action. 2022. Part I.
13. “Awarded Grants.” Open Society Foundations. Accessed August 28, 2023. Available at: https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/grants/past?filter_keyword=more+perfect+union&grant_id=OR2021-80242