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TOMPKINS COUNTY WORKERS CENTER INC
ITHACA, NY · EIN 453135903 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE J20 · Employment · Small ($100K-$1M) · tcworkerscenter.org
revenue
$123K
expenses
$179K
net assets
$57K
employees
3
volunteers
25
program ratio
97%
mission · from form 990

THE MISSION OF THE TOMPKINS COUNTY WORKERS' CENTER IS TO STAND UP WITH ALL PEOPLE TREATED UNFAIRLY AT WORK.

profile · synthesized from sources

Advocacy organization based in Ithaca, NY, that supports workers treated unfairly at work through a rights hotline, community organizing, and living wage campaigns. Provides free legal advocacy and education to workers in Tompkins County and the Finger Lakes region. Runs a certification program for employers paying a living wage and leads policy efforts to raise local minimum wages.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $45K
    THE LIVING WAGE ADVOCACY PROGRAM EDUCATES THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE COST OFLIVING AND THE CHALLENGE TO SELF-SUFFICIENCY THAT LOW WAGE EARNERS FACE WITHOUT A LIVING WAGE. THIS PROGRAM PROMOTES DEVELOPMENT OF A SOCIAL CONTRACT THAT ALL WORKING PEOPLE DESERVE A LIVABLE WAGE IN EXCHANGE FOR THEIR LABOR. OUR CERTIFIED LIVING WAGE EMPLOYER PROGRAM RECOGNIZES ANY ENTERPRISE THAT VOLUNTARILY PAYS ALL EMPLOYEES AT LEAST A LIVING WAGE. WE ALSO HAVE A CAMPAIGN THAT IS DESIGNED TO INCREASE THE MINIMUM WAGE IN TOMPKINS COUNTY.
  2. #2 $45K
    OUR WORKERS RIGHTS HOTLINE IS A SERVICE OFFERED TO LOCAL WORKERS WHO FEEL THEY MAY HAVE RECEIVED UNFAIR OR ILLEGAL TREATMENT AT WORK. WORKERS CONTACT US VIA PHONE, EMASIL OR SOCIAL MEDIA. MOST USERS OF THE HOTLINE ARE RESIDENTS OF TOMPKINS COUNTY, NY, AND THE SURROUNDING FINGER LAKES AND SOUTHERN TIER REGIONS. WORKER ADVOCATES FOR THE HOTLINE EDUCATE WORKERS ABOUT THEIR RIGHTS AT WORK AND ORGANIZING OR COMMMUNICATION SKILLS THAT HELP USERS BECOME BETTER ADVOCATES FOR THEMSELVES OR OTHERS, WITH AN EMPHASIS OF BUILDING A WORKFORCE WITH GREATER SELF-AGENCY AND KNOWLEDGE OF RIGHTS. THE WORKERS CENTER MAY ACT AS A MEDIATOR TO HELP RESOLVE CONFLICTS OR HELP WORKERS PREPARE COMPLAINTS TO REGULATORY AGENCIES WHEN NECESSARY. HOTLINE ADVOCATES
named programs · 5 · from sources

What they call their work

Community Union Organizers
Leadership group of workers and consumers focused on improving pay and working conditions in retail and service sectors
Living Wage Campaign
Advocacy initiative promoting adoption of a living wage in Tompkins County, including public education and a campaign to raise the local minimum wage
Living Wage Employer Certification Program
Program that certifies employers who pay all employees at least the Tompkins County living wage, currently $25.08/hour, with public recognition and incentives
Service Learning in Social Justice
Program offering internships and volunteer opportunities in social justice for students from local colleges and secondary schools
Workers Rights Hotline
Free and confidential service providing information, referral, and advocacy assistance to workers who feel they have been treated unfairly, including help with unemployment claims, discrimination, harassment, and union organizing
activities · 4 groups

What they do

  • Worker Rights Advocacy & Wage Protection 6 activities
    • Advocates for a countywide living wage policy of $25.08/hour by 2026
      Running a campaign to establish a minimum wage of $25.08 per hour in Tompkins County by 2026, with future increases tied to the cost of living, supported by coalition-building and worker storytelling.
    • Conducts research on living wages and worker conditions
      Co-released the 2026 Annual Living Wage Report for Tompkins County and conducted the first-ever study of the Certified Living Wage Employer workforce to inform policy and advocacy efforts.
    • Engages in public education and movement-building around economic justice
      Builds coalitions across businesses, community organizations, labor groups, and local government, and educates the public through networking, presentations, tabling, and media to shift norms around workers’ rights and employer accountability.
    • Operates a Workers' Rights Hotline providing direct support and advocacy
      Provides free and confidential assistance to over 450 workers annually through a hotline that responds to employment-related issues such as unemployment claims, discrimination, harassment, wage theft, and union formation. Between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022, served 312 individuals through the hotline.
    • Recovers wages lost to wage theft through legal advocacy
      Has won over $1,600,000 in wage theft judgments for more than 350 workers since 2003 by supporting workers in asserting their rights to fair compensation.
    • Runs a Living Wage Employer Certification Program
      Operates a certification program that promotes fair wages by recognizing local employers who meet living wage standards; certified 12 new employers between July 2022 and June 2023 and 11 between July 2020 and June 2021, with a total of 29 certified employers to date.
  • Union Member Training & Leadership Development 1 activity
    • Builds grassroots worker leadership and organizing capacity
      Empowers low-wage workers to take leadership roles in campaigns such as the Living Wage initiative and builds organizing skills through training and engagement opportunities to foster long-term activism.
  • Nonprofit Internship Programs 1 activity
    • Offers student engagement and service-learning opportunities
      Provides social justice internships, volunteer roles, and service learning to hundreds of students from local colleges and secondary schools including Ithaca College, Cornell University, and Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3).
  • Uncategorized 3 activities
    • Provides educational resources and guides on workers' rights
      Co-developed a resource booklet on safe and healthy work conditions and updated the Workers Rights Manual in 2015, which has served as a model for other Workers’ Centers in Upstate New York. Also provides access to the WNYCOSH Workers Compensation Guide.
    • Publishes tools to promote fair employment practices
      Published the Restaurant Owners Manual to encourage legal and equitable employment practices in the hospitality industry; the manual is distributed by the Tompkins County Department of Health.
    • Supports unionization efforts and worker organizing
      Provided direct support to successful unionization campaigns at Family and Children’s Service of Ithaca and Cayuga Medical Center, and has assisted over 700 workers in organizing their own unions over the past fifteen years through the Workers Rights Hotline.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$123K
Contributions & grants$116K94%
Program service revenue$7K6%
Investment income$460%
Other revenue$801
expenses
Total expenses$179K
Program expenses97%
Admin / overhead0%
Fundraising3%
Salaries & benefits$129K
Grants paid out$3K
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$78K
Cash$76K
Investments$0
Liabilities$20K
Net assets$57K
Liquid reserves5.1 mo
5 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue -16.9%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

paid leadership · 1
NameTitleHours/wkCompensation
PETE MEYERS COORDINATOR 40 $59K
board members · 9
  • ALEX HYLAND — INDIVIDUAL TRUSTEE
  • AMY TAI — SECRETARY
  • ERIN LEIDY — INDIVIDUAL TRUSTEE
  • KATHY RUSSELL — INDIVIDUAL TRUSTEE
  • LAURA CAIN — INDIVIDUAL TRUSTEE
  • MEGAN GRAHAM — CHAIR
  • NATHAN SITARAMAN — TREASURER
  • RYSZARD USACK — INDIVIDUAL TRUSTEE
  • YOLANDA JOSEPHS — INDIVIDUAL TRUSTEE
relationships · 32

Who they work with

  • AFL-CIO Government — TCWC is a Workers Center affiliate of the AFL-CIO.
  • Action Network Partner — Partnering to host and promote a petition in support of raising the minimum wage to a living wage in Tompkins County.
  • Alternatives Federal Credit Union Partner — Partnered to conduct the Certified Living Wage Employer workforce study.
  • Alternatives Fund of Ithaca Partner — Partnered to conduct the Certified Living Wage Employer workforce study.
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Government — Source of health and safety guidelines referenced for workplace compliance.
  • Communications Workers of America Partner — Partnered to support unionization efforts by workers at Family and Children’s Service of Ithaca.
  • Cornell Industrial and Labor Relations Co-Lab Partner — Partnered with TCWC to update the Living Wage Guidelines in April 2026.
  • Cornell University Partner — Provides internships and volunteer opportunities for students through TCWC’s service learning program.
  • Declaration of Universal Human Rights Government — Cites the Declaration of Universal Human Rights as foundational to its vision for workplace dignity and human rights.
  • Empire Justice Center Partner — Collaborates as part of the Upstate New York Workers’ Center Alliance.
  • Interfaith Worker Justice Partner — National organization that modeled its guide for Living Wage Employer Certification after TCWC’s program.
  • Ithaca College Partner — Provides internships and volunteer opportunities for students through TCWC’s service learning program.
  • Ithaca and Buffalo Co-Labs of Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations Partner — Collaborated on the production and release of the 2026 Annual Living Wage Report for Tompkins County.
  • Jobs with Justice Network — TCWC is affiliated with the national Jobs with Justice network.
  • Jobs with Justice Partner — Partner organization working nationally to advance worker rights and protections.
  • Living Wage for US Network — TCWC is affiliated with Living Wage for US.
  • Midstate Council for Occupational Safety and Health Partner — Collaborated with Tompkins County Workers' Center to develop a resource booklet on workers' rights.
  • New York State Department of Labor Government — Partner agency for filing workplace complaints and unemployment claims related to COVID-19.
  • Northeast NY Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health Partner — Collaborates as part of the Upstate New York Workers’ Center Alliance.
  • Occupational Health Clinical Center Partner — Collaborated with Tompkins County Workers' Center to develop a resource booklet on workers' rights.
  • Occupational Health Clinical Center Partner — Collaborates as part of the Upstate New York Workers’ Center Alliance.
  • Pete Partner — Staff member or organizer at the Tompkins County Workers' Center who collects and shares worker stories; contact point for story submissions.
  • TC3 Partner — Provides internships and volunteer opportunities for students through TCWC’s service learning program.
  • Tompkins County Partner — Provides worker support services within Tompkins County.
  • Tompkins County Department of Health Partner — Distributes the Restaurant Owners Manual developed by TCWC.
  • Tompkins County Health Department Government — Receives complaints about workplaces not complying with face mask requirements during the pandemic.
  • Upstate NY Workers’ Center Alliance Network — TCWC is part of the Upstate NY Workers’ Center Alliance.
  • Western New York Council for Occupational Safety and Health Partner — Collaborates on providing a Workers Compensation Guide for workers.
  • Western New York Worker Center Partner — Collaborates as part of the Upstate New York Workers’ Center Alliance.
  • Worker Justice Center of New York Partner — Collaborates as part of the Upstate New York Workers’ Center Alliance.
+ 2 more
strategies · 5

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Living Wage Certification as Market Incentive
    methodology: fair_trade_model_for_labor
    By creating a voluntary certification program that publicly recognizes employers who pay a living wage, the organization incentivizes fair labor practices through reputational benefits and community accountability, because employer participation increases when aligned with public values and social recognition.
  • Participatory Policy Advocacy with Structural Supports
    methodology: participatory_policy_advocacy
    By integrating community convenings with accessible supports like food and childcare, the organization enables meaningful participation of low-wage workers in shaping policy, because removing material barriers ensures equitable inclusion and strengthens the democratic legitimacy of advocacy outcomes.
  • Story-Based Advocacy for Empathy and Policy Change
    methodology: story_based_advocacy
    By centering personal narratives and lived experiences of low-wage workers, advocacy efforts generate public empathy and humanize economic justice issues, leading to stronger public support and policy change because stories make structural inequities tangible and morally compelling.
  • Worker Empowerment Through Rights Education
    methodology: worker_education
    By educating workers about their legal rights and providing tools to access benefits and file complaints, the organization increases worker agency and enforcement of labor standards, because knowledge combined with support leads to greater individual and collective action.
  • Worker-Led Grassroots Organizing
    methodology: worker_led_organizing
    By training and empowering low-wage workers as leaders and activists, the organization builds sustainable grassroots power that drives labor policy change, because authentic worker leadership strengthens movement legitimacy and long-term campaign impact.