Climate Policy Specialist (P4)

Position description

Location: Washington, DC*

Application Deadline: When filled

*Please Note: Solidarity Center staff enjoy a hybrid telework/in-person schedule. All candidates applying for this role will be expected to work in the Washington, D.C. office a minimum of three days per week unless an ADA or health-related exemption is approved.

Summary:

Solidarity Center seeks a seasoned policy expert to fill a newly developed role in its expanding portfolio around Climate and Labor Justice. This individual must be thoroughly conversant in all aspects of just transitions, must keep abreast of new developments in the field, and act as an organizational clearinghouse for information, materials, and curricula for this area of expertise. The Climate Policy Specialist will advise the Solidarity Center on relevant policy and advocacy efforts, and serve as a resource to staff as well as our union partners. 

At the direction of the Climate and Labor Justice Director, this individual will liaise with counterparts in the AFL-CIO and affiliated unions. The Climate Policy Specialist will represent Solidarity Center in external discussions on relevant issues, expanding the space for a broad discussion of the field with partners, donors, and within the US and global labor movements.  This individual will coordinate with counterparts in Washington-based NGOs, and U.S. Government agencies.

This position will have responsibility for developing organizational standards around Climate and Labor Justice and for holding Solidarity Center staff accountable for maintaining those standards. The Climate Policy Specialist is not primarily responsible for program implementation but must have working knowledge of grant-funded projects, with the ability to produce well-written program reports and evaluations. The Climate Policy Specialist will assist with and, as needed, provide logistical support for international visitors and participants in Washington-based programs related to this area of specialization.

Specific Duties:

• Follow closely and keep abreast of major global climate policy developments, particularly as they relate to worker rights. This may include United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) negotiations; International Labor Organization (ILO)-led just transition efforts; regional, multilateral, and bilateral climate agreements and discussions; and significant national climate policy developments in key countries where the Solidarity Center works
• Serve as a resource for Solidarity Center staff and partners on climate policy, including by sharing relevant models and identifying when global climate policy discussions impact national or regional policy advocacy efforts
• Work closely with the Solidarity Center Policy Director to track key US legislation and policies impacting climate and labor justice and identify opportunities for advancing policy coherence 
• Support Solidarity Center staff and partners in developing and advancing comprehensive and innovative labor-climate policy platforms, including as related to just transition, climate mitigation, climate adaptation, and loss and damage policies, particularly at the national and regional levels
• Mentor policy point persons at partner unions to identify how climate policies are developed in their countries, how these policies could erode or advance worker rights, and strategies for driving a pro-worker agenda within these policy-making spaces
• Develop and maintain relationships with climate and labor justice allies, identifying opportunities to integrate worker rights within broader climate justice advocacy efforts
• Represent the Solidarity Center in a variety of public spaces, including in coalitions, with the media, and in advocacy settings, among others 
• Coordinate with allies across the global labor movement (including national and regional partner organizations, Global Union Federations, and the International Trade Union Confederation) to advance comprehensive and coherent climate and labor justice policies 
• Utilize emerging research, data, and analysis to inform Solidarity Center and partner strategies around climate and labor justice policy advancement
• Collaborate with Solidarity Center staff across departments to support the development of cohesive storytelling that advances worker-centered climate narratives
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Working knowledge of labor policy and worker rights
• Knowledge of a range of different policy levers for unions globally, including finance, trade, UN spaces, etc.
• Extensive knowledge of UNFCCC processes; experience with other UN systems and processes, including the ILO (desirable)
• Demonstrated understanding of and experience with national-level climate policy advocacy and development (strongly preferred) 
• Ability to coordinate and navigate different positions and politics, within the global labor movement and across different stakeholders
• Ability to work and interact easily with a wide variety of people as well as to lead, inspire, and develop the capacity of colleagues and partners around the area of specialization
• Ability to work independently and without supervision and to meet program deadlines
• Ability to manage multiple assignments simultaneously and of making substantive decisions that impact the programs and image of the Solidarity Center
• Good communication and writing skills, including the ability to speak publicly on labor-climate policy issues
• Previous trade union experience
• Demonstrated experience advancing advocacy demands within and among diverse coalitions; experience advancing the rights of workers within the climate justice movement (strongly preferred)
• Demonstrated experience working across cultures or within a multicultural space (strongly preferred)
• Experience in developing and implementing complex climate and labor justice policy initiatives and campaigns (preferred)
• Training experience strongly (preferred)
• Experience navigating the needs and priorities of multiple stakeholders and communities and facilitating cooperation for joint advocacy (desirable)
• Bachelor’s degree in political science, environmental science, international relations, labor relations, or related fields and/or ten years of equivalent work experience
• Computer literacy for word processing and simple spreadsheets
• Fluency in a foreign language (desirable)

Supervisor:  Climate and Labor Justice Director

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification document form upon hire.

This is position falls within the collective bargaining unit and is generously compensated with a gross annual salary starting at approximately $104,000 USD. A robust benefits package includes fully paid health insurance, a retirement plan and pension, life insurance, and ample paid time off for holidays, vacation, and medical leave. Pre-tax deduction programs are also available for commuting, dependent care, and health care expenses. In addition, we offer opportunities and funds for professional development.

About Us:

The Solidarity Center cultivates the values of diversity, equality, and inclusion among its staff and partners. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, marital status, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected under applicable law. Candidates from traditionally underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply. If you are a candidate with a disability and require reasonable accommodations to apply for this position, please contact us at [email protected].

For Candidates Applying from the AFL-CIO: Solidarity Center works in partnership with the AFL-CIO on recruiting and filling positions. Our policy is to notify the AFL-CIO prior to interviewing any of its current employees.