About Us

What is this?

Coworker.org is a new project to allow you to start & win your own campaign for changes in the workplace, with the technology you need at your fingertips.

It can be big or small, heroic or ordinary. If you have an idea, we offer this platform to assist you in turning that idea into a reality.

What can I run a campaign on?

What have you noticed that needs fixing in your workplace? Where do you see an opportunity for positive change? Your campaign need not be limited to particular issues or locations. Your audience can be global or local.

When starting a campaign the most important step is to get the ball rolling - don't worry about getting everything 100% right. Even experienced, professional campaigners make mistakes and often change tack as things develop. You don't need to be an expert to launch a campaign in your workplace, you just need to be willing to learn new things along the way.

What can't I campaign on?

We expect we'll probably see campaigns we don't agree with, campaigns that might seem a bit random and or just plain kooky. That's fine with us, as long as it's not defamatory, discriminatory, illegal--you get the idea

It comes down to this: does your campaign promote or incite violence? Does it promote bullying, or advocate discrimination based on someone's gender, sex, religion, ethnicity, nationality or sexual orientation? Is it defamatory? No? Excellent. We're all good.

We reserve the right to use our judgment and take something down if it crosses a line of common decency, so take responsibility for your campaign. For more information, we recommend reading our Terms of Service.

What is your privacy policy?

These things take up a lot of space, so please read our privacy policy in full.

Who controls the data on the site?

While you are able to email your supporters through the website, privacy laws prevent us from sharing your supporters' email addresses with you. The data collected on and through the site will remain our property.

Besides starting a petition, what else can I do in my campaign?

On Coworker.org you can start a petition, share it with coworkers and communicate further with your supporters via email.

Coworker.org also helps you take your campaign to the street. For instance, you can download a blank copy of your petition, collect signatures in person and then enter your data easily into the system. You can also download a finished copy of your petition to print and deliver to decision-makers.

You can access all of these features from the manage page

This is a tool that allows anyone, anywhere to start a campaign to change their workplace.

Can I cancel my petition at any time?

Yes.

How will signing petitions make a difference?

Petitions provide a useful snapshot of the level of public support for an issue and put forward a list of people who all share a common commitment or concern. And they don't always need a big number to make a big impact - think about a local issue where a petition of 20 coworkers and customers at a sandwich shop would require the store's owner to sit up and take notice.

Petitions can be the catalyst for conversations that change how people think about an issue. They're also a great tool for surfacing the best ideas for improving a workplace. If you're an employee who's targeting your employer in a petition, it's important that you reach out to coworkers to sign and support your petition. Why? Because there is strength in numbers! Reach out to your colleagues by any means available to you -- in person, on the phone, on Facebook or email. Once you've got signatures on your petition, it's important to deliver your petition to your target in-person. Many people choose to contact local reporters to cover the petition delivery. A local news report of your petition can often lead to success.

I'm loving this and I want to learn more. Where do I go from here?

Ah, grasshopper. You have understood the principles of workplace campaigning 101 and are ready for more advanced teachings. Excellent.

Here's the thing. Sometimes a campaign is won pretty quickly, and that's an amazing feeling. Other times, a campaign needs a movement of supporters behind it to succeed. When the barriers to change are high, this tends to be the case.

And that's when you need to build a movement in the workplace.

Movements are comprised of people (coworkers, community members, consumers, etc) united around a common purpose. These individuals can communicate why an issue is important to them and will often experiment together with different tactics over time to build power and instigate long lasting change.

You can't build a movement alone. A movement is born from a team of people with complementary strengths and diverse skill sets. In a workplace setting, we often refer to this as building "your committee." After talking to coworkers about your campaign, the next step is to build a committee of people who are willing to take the campaign to the next level. .

To build a movement, you need to find other people in your workplace and your community who care about the issue but have different skills from you. Some coworkers will prefer to use Facebook to network with supporters, share ideas, and recruit new supporters to the campaign. Others will prefer to hit the streets, collecting signatures for the campaign at church or at the library. You might enlist a coworker to create graphics for the campaign, or to follow-up directly via email with petition signers. Real movements grow through collaboration and skill sharing, and while some may step forward more naturally to be leaders, everyone has a part to play.

I no longer wish to receive updates on a campaign I signed up to. How do I unsubscribe?

It's sad to see you go, but you can unsubscribe by clicking the 'unsubscribe' link in site emails you receive.