Support Project Equity

What would America look like if we restored the middle class by creating pathways to economic resiliency and wealth for millions of workers?

The combination of low wages, limited opportunities for advancement, and rising housing costs have made it difficult for low-to-moderate income workers—who are disproportionately Black and Latino—to build generational wealth. At the same time, there is a small business closure crisis unfolding; baby boomer business owners—who employ 1 in 5 private sector workers— are retiring without succession plans. Without intervention, the wave of retirements, known as the Silver Tsunami, will lead to many small businesses closing their doors for good, resulting in massive job losses and disrupting local economies across America.

Employee ownership is a rare solution that aligns the interests of business owners, workers and communities. Studies have repeatedly shown that employee ownership can be a particularly powerful income and wealth building opportunity for low-income workers and workers of color. Through employee ownership, companies such as Happy Earth Cleaning Co-op have reported advantages such as increased wages, expanded benefits, distributed patronage and decreased staff turnover.

Donors to Project Equity harness the power of employee ownership to achieve both deep impact for workers and scale for expanding opportunities to communities across America.

If we make just this one change—expanding who gets to benefit from business ownership—we can transform the lives of millions, eradicating the notion that only some people get to succeed in this country and reshaping the American economy into something better, stronger, and far more inclusive.

A more equitable economy starts with you.

Join the Movement today.