United Renters for Justice / Inquilinxs Unidxs por Justicia: Lead Policy Organizer

Lead Policy Organizer

InquilinXs UnidXs por Justicia (United Renters for Justice) (IX) was founded to build tenant power to change the housing system in Minneapolis. We are a multi-identity/gender, multi-language, and multi-cultural organization. IX was founded by Latinx community members to work with renter communities most oppressed by high rents, bad conditions, and intimidation by landlords in the city. IX is seeking a seasoned community organizer with a keen interest in housing policy to lead and build infrastructure for our ongoing policy campaigns.

Job Title: Lead Policy Organizer

Location: Minneapolis, MN

Employment Type: Full-Time, Salaried

Reports To: Organizing Director

Supervises: At least two staff organizers

*Bilingual fluency in English and Spanish is preferred

About the role:

IX is seeking a passionate and strategic Lead Policy Organizer to grow our political program, support members in driving electoral work, and help train tenants to organize unions in their own buildings. This is a critical moment in the housing justice movement, with tenant unions across the nation building renter power and harnessing it to drive transformative policy change. IX is deeply committed to organizing alongside the broader progressive movement in Minneapolis to advance key issues facing renters, particularly those from racially- and economically-marginalized communities.

The Lead Policy Organizer will work closely with the Organizing Director and Executive Director to design and implement a long-term organizing strategy to support policy campaigns; strengthen our base of tenant leaders engaged in policy work; and empower our membership at large to build tenant unions in their buildings. Our key policy priorities include: rent stabilization, building tenant unions, social housing and renter eviction protections. This organizer will have a key leadership role in a 501(c)(4), which will develop legislative and electoral strategies and campaigns.

Key Responsibilities: Essential duties and responsibilities may include but are not limited to the following:

• Strategic Leadership

• Facilitate decisions about strategy with key staff and members

• Build plans for implementation of those strategies

• Lead, develop and enhance trainings for membership-at-large in support of building tenant unions

• Lead, develop and enhance trainings for membership about key policy issues, such as rent control, just cause eviction and social housing

• Strengthen existing partnerships while building new relationships and coalitions with peers at local progressive organizations, including labor unions, housing organizations, and immigrant rights organizations

• Support staff organizers and membership in activities such as interacting with elected officials, giving testimony at city, county and state hearings, and the candidate endorsement process

• Lead and facilitate weekly team meetings with supervisees

• Lead and facilitate biweekly meetings with tenant leaders activated around policy

• Organizing and Member Development

• Connect campaign work to organizational culture and priorities

• Actively engage in conflict transformation leadership

• Assess strategies, impacts, and interpersonal dynamics

• Leadership development for the campaign staff and members

• Member-based strategy and decision making

• Supervision & Staff Development

• Supervise two staff organizers working on policy campaigns

• Build a mutual relationship of connection, honesty, respect, directness, and trust.

• Align roles, responsibilities, and work within the organization

• Align organizational vision, goals, and strategy with individual work in campaigns.

• Clarify and set goals and direction for individual work.

• Communicate expectations regarding performance and share honest and explicit feedback.

• Evaluate and reflect on the use of time, follow through, and completion of work.

• Provide coaching and support on achieving goals and addressing what is getting in the way.

• Identify and address tensions and conflicts that are arising and use transformative conflict resolution to resolve

• Evaluate individual strengths, growth areas, and development needs on an ongoing basis

• Convene and follow through on the annual feedback and evaluation process.

• Work together to determine what kinds of activities and training might improve the ability of the person to do the work

• Co-create specific development plans

Experience, Qualifications & Requirements:

• The ideal candidate will have:

• 2+ years supervising and developing teams

• 2+ years designing, implementing and leading trainings

• 2+ years experience lobbying, electoral campaigns or legislative advocacy

• Experience working across diverse race, class, language, culture and immigration statuses

• Experience developing campaigns, providing strategic direction, and leading programs

• Strong organizational skills with an ability to manage multiple priorities at once

• Strong familiarity with computers, including proficiency with Google Suite

• Comfort working evenings/weekends when needed; flexibility is essential

• Preferred, but not essential:

• Experience supervising and training new organizers to build power

• Experience with electoral campaigns

• Bilingual in Spanish and English

Compensation & Benefits:

• Starting at a base annual rate equivalent of $58,000/year, our compensation policy allows for additional pay dependent on a staff person's need to financially support others and/or if they are a sole wage earner.

• 32-hour minimum workweek, with overtime for more than 40 hours per week.

• 160 hours of paid time off, equivalent to 5 weeks of PTO for vacation and sick leave

• 11 paid holidays

• Two annual week-long office closures for all-staff breaks

• 100% Employer-paid, no-deductible health and dental insurance (for employee, partner, and children)

• Paid parental leave

• Mileage reimbursement

• Annual raises of at least 3%

• Annual 5% year-end bonus that may be applied towards a retirement fund

• Investment in professional development and leadership growth

IX is an equal opportunity employer. We strongly encourage applications from Black, Indigenous and People of Color; LGBTQ+ people; women; immigrants; people from working-class backgrounds; formerly incarcerated people; and other marginalized communities.