Grantmaking and Partnerships

Led by a cross-sector Leadership Board that is ideologically diverse and representative of often-siloed groups, WorkRise invests in research on policies, programs, and practices that have the potential to accelerate economic security and mobility for low-wage workers. We fund analyses and the creation of data that shed light on labor market barriers, trends, and opportunities. And we engage in strategic partnerships that help advance evidence-based solutions in support of our mission. Learn more about our most recent request for proposals and how you can collaborate with WorkRise.

The Latest
Employer practices Wednesday, December 18, 2024

How Businesses Can Advance Manufacturing's Future through Collaboration with Workers

Right now, US manufacturers face real challenges meeting their workforce needs. But with innovations in how jobs are designed—such as…

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

In Depth

Illustration of people of different ethnicities
Worker voice, representation, and power Feature Last updated on October 24, 2024

Segregation in the Low-Wage Workforce

Over the past 50 years, the composition of the low-wage workforce has changed: more than half of low-wage workers are now people of color, up from just 20 percent in 1971. Today, Black, Latino, and women workers are more likely to be segregated into worse-quality and lower-paying jobs.

WorkRise Research

Last updated on October 24, 2024
African American technician worker holds part of robotic arm
Employer practices Last updated on November 19, 2024
Video

WorkRise Shorts: Overcoming Racial Disparities in Manufacturing Recruitment and Training Programs

Can a new local manufacturing workforce development program that targets workers who are not traditionally engaged in the sector overcome racial disparities in its hiring and wage rates?
Last updated on November 19, 2024
Working Knowledge

The Latest

group of diverse businesspeople working on a laptop
Economic context Last updated on June 11, 2024
Research Summary

Better Local Labor Market Conditions Can Help Reduce the Risk of Reincarceration in the United States

Formerly incarcerated people who face better local labor market conditions when they are released from prison are estimated to face lower likelihoods of being reincarcerated.

Marokey Sawo

Last updated on June 11, 2024
Skills and training Last updated on June 04, 2024
Video

WorkRise Shorts: Applying AI to Rebuild Middle Class Jobs with David Autor

Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor David Autor asks what artificial intelligence could enable people to do and who could be enabled by this tool.
Last updated on June 04, 2024
A group of co-workers of varying genders having a meeting
Employer practices Last updated on June 04, 2024
Article

Better Business Outcomes: Here are the Basics of LGBTQ+ Workplace Policies and Practices

Business goals and worker well-being can be improved through strong LGBTQ+ workplace policies and practices, which research shows benefit workers’ well-being and firms’ financial performances.

Oluwasekemi Odumosu

Last updated on June 04, 2024
Manual workers in cheese and milk dairy production factory.
Employer practices Last updated on May 28, 2024
Video

WorkRise Shorts: Racial and Gender Discrimination in the Temporary Staffing Sector

The temporary staffing industry is a $186-billion industry, widely used across sectors from food processing to product creation. Temp staffing can be used to skirt liability, and staffing agencies and the companies that use them create a second-tiered workforce, says Lorraine Sands, legal organizer at GLOW: Grassroots Law and Organizing for Workers. To advance the process of bettering temp workers’ rights, this research highlighted how racial and gender discrimination is often pervasive in the temporary staffing sector. The report explores the national context but focuses particularly on Harris County, Texas, and Nashville, Tennessee.
Last updated on May 28, 2024

Research

Skills and training Executive Summary November 15, 2023

The Workforce Almanac: A System-Level View of US Workforce Training Providers

The Workforce Almanac, a first-of-its-kind effort to understand workforce training at a systemwide level is a an open-source directory of nearly 17,000 workforce training providers across the United States. This database offers the most comprehensive view to date of US workforce training providers and includes information such as provider names, locations, and types.

Grantee Research

November 15, 2023
Employer practices Executive Summary October 18, 2023

Who Has Access to Paid Sick and Safe Leave?

A new report by Family Values at Work and World Policy Analysis Center charts access to paid sick and safe leave in the US and identifies the most equitable policies in effect.

Grantee Research

October 18, 2023
Economic context Infographic September 12, 2023

Leveraging Federal Funds to Create Quality Jobs

Do you want better jobs for your community? Through new federal dollars, state and local policymakers have a once-in-a-generation chance to build a new and thriving workforce.

Pamela J. Loprest , Todd Greene, Ryan Kelsey

WorkRise Research

September 12, 2023
Worker voice, representation, and power Brief August 09, 2023

Worker Voice, Representation, and Power

In this brief, we provide a summary of the research framework that informs WorkRise’s thinking about the importance of worker voice and power for low-wage workers’ labor market mobility. We then offer a series of specific priority areas for future…

Joe Peck , Elisabeth Jacobs

WorkRise Research

August 09, 2023