New York Immigration Coalition Staff Launch NYIC United, Forming First-Ever Union in Organization’s History
New York, NY (June 9, 2026) —Today, with 80% of eligible members on cards and 70% signing a voluntary recognition letter, a supermajority of New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) employees announced the launch of their effort to form a union, NYIC United with the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 153. For the first time in the organization’s almost 40-year history, workers are launching their union to secure a formal collective voice in the workplace, marking a historic milestone for staff.
NYIC is a New York City-based nonprofit with offices throughout New York State, including in Albany, Buffalo, and Rochester, that brings together more than 200 diverse member organizations to advance justice and opportunity for all. Many workers are immigrants themselves, and their union represents workers from all of the NYIC’s offices statewide and from every department, including Advocacy, Programs, Policy, Development, Operations, Membership and Capacity Building, Communications, and Legal. NYIC also relies on government funding coming from contracts at the state and city levels.
NYIC United presented a voluntary recognition letter to management and is calling on executive leadership to recognize the union swiftly and without any interference. Workers are organizing for increased protections for immigrant workers, support for their immigration cases, financial transparency, and pay equity.
The union reflects a shared commitment to both labor rights and immigrant rights, rooted in the belief that the values the organization champions externally must also be upheld in the workplace. This year, NYIC cohosted the New York City International Workers’ Day action with labor unions and the Central Labor Council. At that action, NYIC management declared that “New York’s workforce stands united against all attacks on immigrants and workers.” Workers are calling on NYIC management to stand with all immigrant workers, that include their own staff.
NYIC United represents the dynamic and deeply committed staff who work every day to advance justice, provide critical services, and build power for immigrant communities across New York State. As workers who reflect the very communities this organization serves — including Black, Indigenous, and people of color, working-class people, immigrants of varying documentation statuses, and children of immigrants — forming a union is an important step toward strengthening our collective voice and ensuring a more equitable, sustainable future for both staff and the organization. Through this effort, workers hope not only to help shape NYIC’s future, but also to cultivate leadership within the growing labor movement nationwide.
Follow the group on Instagram at @nyicunited.