Grants for unions

860 labor unions received at least $101.8 million in grants for the most recent fiscal year. This includes 311 grants made from 268 grantmaking organizations, with a median grant amount of $1,000. Of these 268 foundations, 91% made just a single grant to unions, and 1% made grants to four or more unions. This analysis is based on grantmakers that e-file their Form 990s, and likely is an undercount of grants.
$101,764,278
Total grant dollars given to unions
311
Number of grants made annually to unions
268
Number of grantmakers funding unions
$1,000
Median grant size to unions

Foundations that support labor unions

Out of all grants made to unions, 77% came from small foundations with less than $10 million in assets. The top 10 grantmakers accounted for 99% of the dollar-value of grants to unions. Foundations funding unions also made grants to religious organizations, multiservice human service organizations, universities, colleges, and scholarship organizations.

Foundation size

Foundation size Number of grantmakers
Small
 
209
Medium
 
29
Large
 
30
Small foundations have <$10M in assets. Medium foundations have $10M to $50M in assets. Large foundations have >$50M in assets.

Foundation type

Foundation type Number of grantmakers
Community
 
3
Private
 
203
Corporate
 
18
Other
 
44

Grants made

Grants made to unions Number of grantmakers
1
 
245
2-3
 
19
4-10
 
4
11+
 
0

Top 10 foundations supporting labor unions

Grantmaker State Geographic focus Percent of grant dollars to unions Number of grants made to unions Median grant size
National Education Association of the United States DC National 41.5% 9 $4,473,060
American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations DC National 44.0% 5 $6,813,500
Land O'Lakes Foundation MN National 0.1% 5 $500
The Ansell Grimm and Aaron Foundation NJ Metro 2.6% 5 $300
Midwest Operating Engineers Fringe Benefit Funds IL Metro 65.9% 3 $3,330,000
Washington Research Foundation (WRF) WA Metro 0.2% 3 $5,000
Carl M Hansen Foundation WA Metro 7.0% 3 $4,000
Washington Laborers-Employers Cooperation and Education Trust WA Metro 22.8% 3 $3,854
Parkland Foundation TX Metro 74.0% 2 $6,547,623
American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees DC National 56.8% 2 $5,342,119

Labor unions grantees

Unions with more than $5 million in total revenues received 85% of all grant dollars. These larger organizations accounted for 14% of all unions.

Grant amounts

Size of grant Number of grants
<$10k
 
291
$10k-$25k
 
0
$25k-$100k
 
0
$100k+
 
20

Grant amount by grantee size

Grantee annual revenue Median grant size
<$100k
 
$1,000
$100k-$500k
 
$500
$500k-$1M
 
$1,500
$1M-$5M
 
$1,250
>$5M
 
$5,000

Grantee states

State of grantee Number of grants
Massachusetts
 
45
New York
 
43
Washington
 
30
California
 
26
Other
 
167

Grantee metros

Metro area of grantee Number of grants
New York City
 
43
Boston
 
43
Seattle
 
26
Washington DC
 
18
Other
 
163

Top 25 grants made to unions

Grantee Grant size Purpose Grantmaker
California Teachers Association $11,793,904 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Hotel Restaurant and Club Employees and Bartenders Union $8,083,606 FMV New York Hotel and Motel Trades Council (HTC)
AFL-CIO - Working America $6,813,500 Operating Subsidy, Program Support, Office Space American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations
Dallas County Hospital District $6,547,623 Cash Parkland Foundation
Dallas County Hospital District $6,547,623 Support To PHHS Capital Projects and Patient Programs Parkland Foundation
New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) $5,849,383 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
American Federation of State County & Municipal Employees - C0093ma AFSCME Council 93 $5,553,998 Contractual Agreements American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees
American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees $5,130,240 Allocation American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees
Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) $5,045,419 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Ohio Education Association $5,027,951 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Michigan Education Association $4,473,060 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Illinois Education Association $4,354,483 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Massachusetts Teachers Association $4,117,932 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Washington Education Association $3,453,667 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Indiana Illinois and Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting $3,330,000 Monitor Construction Projects Midwest Operating Engineers Fringe Benefit Funds
Indiana Illinois and Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting $3,330,000 Midwest Operating Engineers Fringe Benefit Funds
Indiana Illinois and Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting $3,330,000 FMV Midwest Operating Engineers Fringe Benefit Funds
New England Carpenters Labor Management Program $3,000,000 Job Creation North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters
AFL-CIO - Fresno-Madera-Tulare-Kings CLC $2,795,605 Employment and Training Services Fresno Area Workforce Investment Corporation
Education Minnesota $2,674,264 Financial Assistance National Education Association of the United States
Laboratory To Combat Human Trafficking $5,000 General Donation To Support Organization Or Program The Colorado Health Foundation
West Side Career and Technology Center Education Association $5,000 Program Support The Luzerne Foundation
University of Washington / Professional Staff Organization $5,000 Joseph Gottstein Lab Gift Fund Alhadeff Family Charitable Foundation
AFL-CIO - Chicago Federation of Labor & Indus $5,000 Lobbying See Forward Fund
United Steelworkers - 09367 Local $5,000 Contribution International Union of Painters and Allied Trades - 35 District Council
Methodology: To determine grants and grantees, Cause IQ analyzes electronically-filed Form 990, Form 990-EZ, and Form 990-PF financial disclosure documents, matching grantees to specific organizations using EINs and fuzzy matching logic. The "Unions" category for this page is determined by the "J40: Labor unions, organizations" National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities (NTEE) code. Cause IQ determines NTEEs for organizations by its own internally-developed secret-sauce algorithms.