Our Mission

Defend Workers is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to advancing laws and policies that raise the standard of living for the working men and women of Oregon across all sectors: industry, health care, education, agriculture, and more.

Businesses large and small depend on workers every day, to produce the food we eat, build the homes we live in, and create the world around us that we enjoy.

We pursue policies and laws that make is easier for workers to get by and get ahead. Bigger paychecks, lower costs, realized dreams: that’s our goal for Oregon’s workers. We work with community leaders, associations, businesses, elected officials, and other stakeholders to deliver for the working men and women of Oregon. We specifically support:

• Strengthen Oregon’s economy with tax policies that drive economic growth, create jobs, and generate more revenue for critical investments that benefit workers.

• Lowering the cost of health care through reform that increases competition between providers, improves quality of care, and allows every worker to get the coverage they need.

• Making housing affordable with laws and policies that spur housing construction, increase home ownership, and lower rents.

• Growing the agricultural workforce by making it easier for farms large and small to thrive, raise wages for workers, and encouraging more Oregonians to become farmers.

• Reforming Oregon’s education system to increase raise student achievement, increase the high school graduation rate, and expand access to the career and technical trades.