Application Guide
How to Apply for Deputy Director
at One Fair Wage
🏢 About One Fair Wage
One Fair Wage is a unique advocacy organization focused specifically on eliminating subminimum wages and improving conditions in the service sector through a multi-pronged approach combining policy, organizing, and narrative change. Unlike broader labor organizations, they target the specific injustice of tipped and subminimum wages, making them a focused force for systemic change in restaurant and service industries. Someone might want to work here to drive tangible policy wins on a pressing economic justice issue with a clear, actionable mission.
About This Role
As Deputy Director, you would serve as the operational and strategic right hand to the President and Chief of Staff, translating high-level vision into executable national campaign plans. This role is impactful because you would directly supervise the teams driving policy change, public messaging, and on-the-ground organizing in key states, making you central to achieving One Fair Wage's mission of ending subminimum wages nationwide.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day might involve a morning strategy call with the President to assess progress on key state campaigns, followed by reviewing communications materials and policy briefs from department heads. The afternoon could include coaching a State Director on local coalition challenges and preparing for a media interview to advocate for pending wage legislation, all while monitoring campaign metrics and adjusting timelines.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who One Fair Wage Is Looking For
- A seasoned organizer with a decade-plus track record in worker or community campaigns, likely from the labor, economic justice, or progressive advocacy space, not just general non-profit management.
- A proven senior manager who has built systems and structures for teams in fast-paced campaign environments, not just overseen existing departments.
- A strategic thinker with demonstrated experience developing and pivoting advocacy strategy in complex political landscapes, such as state ballot initiatives or legislative fights.
- A credible public spokesperson comfortable representing a wage justice mission to media, partners, and policymakers, with authenticity rooted in organizing experience.
📝 Tips for Applying to One Fair Wage
Quantify your 10+ years of organizing experience: specify campaigns (e.g., 'led a 3-year statewide ballot initiative on wage increases'), number of staff supervised, and size of teams or coalitions managed.
Tailor your resume to highlight experience with the specific tactics mentioned: policy advancement, voter engagement, employer engagement, and narrative shift—show you've worked in similar multi-strategy campaigns.
Demonstrate knowledge of the subminimum wage issue: briefly reference current state campaigns (like Michigan or Ohio ballot measures) or federal policy debates to show you understand their specific battlefield.
Emphasize experience supervising remote or distributed teams, as this is a remote role overseeing state directors and campaign managers across the US.
Showcase a balance of strategic development ('developed campaign strategy for...') and operational execution ('built a system for tracking state legislative progress...') to match the role's dual focus.
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
["Your direct experience in worker/organizing campaigns and how it prepares you to lead OFW's multi-state efforts.", 'A specific example of developing and advancing a campaign strategy in a complex, fast-moving environment (e.g., a legislative fight or ballot campaign).', 'Your approach to senior-level supervision and building systems that help teams work effectively, especially in a remote setting.', 'Why you are personally aligned with the mission to end subminimum wages, showing passion for service sector justice.']
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → OFW's current state campaigns and policy priorities (e.g., One Fair Wage state ballot initiatives, their 'High Road Restaurants' program).
- → Recent media coverage or public statements by OFW leadership to understand their narrative and strategic focus.
- → The landscape of subminimum wage policy: which states have eliminated it, current federal bills (like the Raise the Wage Act), and key opposition arguments.
- → OFW's key partners and coalitions (e.g., ROC United, other labor groups) to understand their ecosystem.
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Presenting generic non-profit leadership experience without specific, quantifiable examples from worker organizing or campaign environments.
- Focusing only on policy or communications expertise without demonstrating hands-on organizing and field campaign management.
- Showing lack of familiarity with the specific issue of subminimum/tipped wages or OFW's current campaigns, suggesting a generic interest in 'advocacy' rather than this mission.
📅 Application Timeline
This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.
Typical hiring timeline:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!