Workers Confluence 2026 Grantmaking: Meeting the Moment, Staying the Course

As summer turns to fall, we look back on a year of grantmaking during which Workers Confluence met the moment, while also staying true to the long-term strategy that informs all of our work. We distributed an unprecedented number of Rapid Response grants to worker and community organizations on the front lines of responding to Operation Metro Surge, and we increased our multi-year funding to a cohort of organizations engaged in ongoing strategic partnerships with labor unions.

In 2026, Workers Confluence has granted a combined $435,000 to our 6 core grantees in grant amounts ranging from $60,000 to $90,000:

• Awood Center
• Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en la Lucha
• Greater Minnesota Worker Center
• Kids Count on Us (the Childcare Coalition of ISAIAH)
• New Justice Project of Minnesota
• Restaurant Opportunities Center of Minnesota

We also distributed $47,500 in Rapid Response funds in January to 4 organizations in grant amounts ranging from $7,500 to $15,000:

• The Advocates for Human Rights, for Know Your Rights trainings and legal support for immigrant meatpacking workers
• Kids Count on Us, to hire a temporary Spanish-speaking organizer as part of their support for immigrant childcare workers
• Northwest Suburbs Rapid Response Coalition, for mutual aid coordination in the Twin Cities’ northwest suburbs
• Sex Worker Outreach Project of Minneapolis, for outreach and mutual aid coordination focused on immigrant and BIPOC sex workers

The need for support has only grown in recent months, as our communities strive to heal from the impacts of the Surge, while also coping with the ongoing ICE abductions of immigrant workers and their families. So over the summer we distributed a combined $26,000 in organizational development grants to 3 of our core cohort members:

• Restaurant Opportunities Center of Minnesota, to support team reflection and restructuring
• Awood Center and Greater Minnesota Worker Center, to fund their participation in the National Convergence for Democracy and the Inside Organizer School