Senior Director of Economic Security

The National Employment Law Project (NELP) seeks a highly collaborative and strategic leader to advance our mission to build a good-jobs economy. The Senior Director of Economic Security will lead and manage a team focused on ensuring that workers have economic security throughout their lifetimes. We seek to advance bold long-term transformative policy solutions that reflect the needs of all workersincluding historically marginalized groups such as women Black immigrant and low-wage workers and workers with records. Check our careers page for upcoming opportunities. Join us!

About the National Employment Law Project

Founded in 1969 the nonprofit National Employment Law Project (NELP) is a leading advocacy organization with the mission to build a just and inclusive economy where all workers have expansive rights and thrive in good jobs. Together with local state and national partners NELP advances its mission through transformative legal and policy solutions research capacity building and communications. Our victories over the last decade have impacted the lives of an estimated 100 million workers and their families. We lead and collaborate in fights for higher pay and just benefits secure and safe jobs and support at each stage in a workers life. For more information read our annual reports and explore our website:

NELP has a team of 55 staff people based across offices in New York City Washington D.C. and Berkeley CA with a 9-person Board of Directors an annual budget of $14M and hundreds of partners in the field with whom we work to further our mission. This position can be located any of our three locations.

What You Will Do

The Senior Director of Economic Security leads our federal state and local campaigns to secure lifelong economic security for all workers. You will be responsible for cultivating policy influence managing a high-performing team and ensuring alignment between our advocacy work and organizational vision mission and strategic plan. You will be the supervisor for four team members focused on improving and expanding unemployment insurance benefits retirement security and climate justice for all workers including those historically excluded from rights benefits and protections. As part of the management team you will partner closely with leadership. Key responsibilities include:

Lead and Drive Policy Advocacy (40%):

The Senior Director engages in and oversees multi-faceted efforts and campaigns with partners to leverage our legal and policy expertise strategic communications and an extensive network of stakeholders to advance our good-jobs economy agenda. You will:

• Lead local and state advocacy in key policy priority areas as described above in the Economic Security portfolio by engaging key constituencies allied organizations policymakers and federal state and local agency staff.
• Provide or direct legal policy and strategic support to federal state and local partners and for campaigns across the country including drafting or overseeing the development of model legislation policy briefs legal analyses and amicus briefs.
• Represent NELP in advocacy coalitions public forums legislative and agency hearings and in the media.
• Shape public narrative by drafting or overseeing reports op-eds blogs and educational materials and engaging in strategic communications that influence stakeholders and build support.

Team Leadership Supervision and Management (60%):

The Senior Director serves as an active member of the leadership team who shapes our organizational direction. The Senior Director is responsible for staff development and fostering a team culture grounded in mutual respect shared accountability inclusion and high performance. You will:

• Supervise a high-performing team providing coaching mentorship and professional development support.
• Set and evaluate clear performance goals oversee progress and conduct annual performance evaluations.
• Assign and reassign work based on campaign needs organizational strategy and staff strengths.
• Lead hiring processes make hiring recommendations and recommend promotions and other performance-based personnel decisions.
• Direct and manage the team in translating our strategic plan into campaigns and staff work plans that are aligned and accountable to the organizational priorities.
• Support broader organization development and change management efforts including evolving strategies structures and priorities.

Who You Are

• You have 10 years of senior-level leadership in public policy legal and/or legislative advocacy in a complex nonprofit government or mission-driven agency setting; background in workers rights advocacy is preferred particularly in the economic security portfolio described above.
  
• You have 4 of demonstrated success in supervising and leading a team to success.
• You have a J.D. an advanced degree in a relevant field or equivalent relevant experience.
• You are an effective persuasive communicator with strong presentation speaking written and nonverbal skills who conveys information clearly and concisely internally and externally with high emotional intelligence and professional judgment.
• You bring innovative and creative ideas as well as the ability to develop and implement holistic communications strategies.
• You are a high-level strategic thinker who has a track record of increasing organizational success building effective cross-team initiatives operationalizing a vision across an organization and using evaluation tools and metrics to support accountability.
• You have strong interpersonal and collaboration skills and a demonstrated ability to work well with others and influence other teams leadership and partners. You cultivate and manage internal and external relationships with trust nuance and thoughtfulness.
• You are a self-aware leader who cultivates empathy through open and honest dialogue builds relationships that foster trust and transparency across lines of difference and offers direct honest feedback with compassion and clarity of purpose.
• You have strong project management skills. You set clear priorities oversee staff track details and deliver timely results.
• You are a problem solver. You are proactive with the ability to get things done and manage complex projects exhibiting judgment under pressure.
• You are a highly skilled facilitator and coach who is an inspirational curious and relational leader with strong interpersonal skills fostering a sense of purpose and community empowering staff to grow and develop professionally and has high standards for holding yourself and others accountable.
• You are flexible and agile responsive to feedback open to changing direction and focus on continuous improvement and innovation.
• You foster inclusive and trusting team environments by supporting the success of others building relationships across lines of difference and mutual accountability.
• You operate with a commitment to excellence integrity diplomacy humility and camaraderie.
• Candidates must be eligible and authorized to work in the United States.

Start Date Location Compensation & Benefits: This full-time exempt position is based out of one of our three offices (New York City Washington D.C. or Berkeley CA). NELP has a hybrid model that requires staff to work in-person at least six days per month. This hybrid model seeks to leverage both the benefits of working with colleagues in-person and the benefits of flexible remote arrangements. This position will require some travel including for NELP internal meetings or conferences. The start date will be as soon as possible. The salary for the Senior Director of Economic Security is $140000-$155000 depending on education and years of experience.

Compensation at NELP includes an excellent comprehensive benefits package including full coverage of family health insurance a medical reimbursement plan generous vacation and sick leave plus additional organization-wide holidays significant contribution from the employer to a retirement plan (both an unelected contribution and employer match); and for qualifying participants up to 26 weeks paid parental leave 12 weeks paid medical leave 6 weeks of paid family medical caregiving leave childcare/eldercare reimbursement assistance and student loan repayment at NELP are represented by Local 2320 UAW excluding management and certain other categories. This role is a non-bargaining unit position.

To Apply: Candidates must be eligible and authorized to work in the United States. Go to our online application system at to submit a cover letter and resume. If you have questions regarding this announcement please forward those to noting the job title in the subject line. No phone calls or other email inquiries please. We will consider applications on a rolling basis; interested applicants are encouraged to submit sooner than later.

NELP is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and an equal opportunity fair chance employer committed to building a culture of belonging and inclusion where team members can thrive. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race color creed national origin sex age disability marital status sexual orientation military status prior record of arrest or conviction citizenship status current employment status or caregiver status.

Required Experience:

Senior Manager