How to Get Involved with NELP's Fight for a Good-Jobs Economy

Updated

You can get involved with the National Employment Law Project (NELP) by starting from its invitation to "join the fight for a good-jobs economy" and choosing the path that fits your role: learn the issues, use its research and toolkits in your own advocacy, or follow and support its policy agenda. NELP is a worker-advocacy organization, and its site is organized around issue education, research, and policy campaigns rather than a single sign-up flow, so the practical first step is to pick the section that matches what you want to do.

Start by Understanding What NELP Is Fighting For

NELP describes itself as leading the fight for a good-jobs economy, defined on its site as an economy where every job pays a living wage and includes robust benefits. It states that its victories over the last decade have improved the lives of an estimated 100 million workers and their families, and that it has worked on these issues for more than 55 years.

The site frames the problem with a few headline facts you can use to orient yourself:

  • The federal minimum wage is $7.25, about $15,000 annually, which NELP says is not enough to support a family.
  • 1 in 5 workers have no paid sick time, and many who do are disciplined for using it.
  • 87% of U.S. occupations are racially segregated, with workers of color overrepresented in the lowest-paid, least stable, and most dangerous jobs.

These points tell you the scope of the work before you decide how to plug in.

Choose an Issue Area to Follow

NELP organizes its work into issue areas. Exploring them is the simplest way to find the part of the fight that matches your interests or your community's needs. The issues listed on the site are:

  • Worker Power
  • Corporate Accountability
  • Anti-Discrimination
  • Health & Safety
  • Enforcing Labor Laws
  • Climate Justice
  • Contracted Workers
  • Workers with Records
  • Unemployment Insurance
  • Minimum & Living Wage

NELP says its goal is a good-jobs economy that includes the needs of women, Black people, immigrants, and workers with records and their families. Reading the issue pages gives you the vocabulary and framing NELP uses, which is useful if you plan to cite its positions in local advocacy.

Use NELP's Research and Toolkits in Your Own Advocacy

If your goal is to act in your own community, NELP's research and toolkit section is the most directly usable part of the site. The site lists materials including:

Resource Type What it's for
Defend Against Deregulation: A How-to Guide on Writing and Submitting Federal Comments Toolkit Guidance on drafting and submitting comments on federal rulemaking
Empowering App-Based Workers Act: Urgently Needed Legislation Fact sheet Background on proposed legislation for app-based workers
Centering Job Quality for Workers (research) Research Analysis supporting job-quality policy

The federal-comments toolkit is a concrete example of how NELP's materials translate into action: it addresses the input (a proposed federal rule), the action (writing and submitting a public comment), and the expected result (participating in the regulatory process). If you want to influence a rule that affects workers, that toolkit is the place to start.

Follow the Policy Agenda to See Priorities

NELP publishes a policy and advocacy agenda; its 2026 agenda is described as reflecting "an affirmative vision: a good-jobs economy in which all workers can have financial stability, exercise their rights, and shape the future of their communities." Reading the agenda tells you which campaigns NELP is prioritizing in a given year, which helps you decide whether to align your own advocacy, share the materials, or contact the organization about a specific issue.

The site also highlights organizational news, such as new policy-team hires and a visiting fellow for good jobs and democracy, which signals where NELP is building capacity.

Decide How You Want to Engage

Use this quick guide to pick your entry point:

  • You want to understand the movement: read the issue areas and the "What We're Fighting For" section.
  • You want practical tools for local action: go to the research and toolkits, starting with the federal-comments guide if you are engaging a rulemaking.
  • You want to track or support campaigns: follow the annual policy and advocacy agenda and the "New & Notable" updates.
  • You are a researcher, journalist, or partner organization: use the research library and fact sheets as citable background.

One caveat: the site's homepage does not spell out membership, volunteering, or donation mechanics, so if you want to give time or money, look for the specific "join" or "support" links on the site rather than assuming a sign-up process from the homepage alone.