500 Workers. One Call. Here's What Comes Next.

Over 500 people registered for our Mass Call on Sunday, February 22nd — including laid-off tech workers from 62 companies, as well as allies, entry-level workers, and students from 51 organizations, schools, and government offices. Of the 200+ people who showed up, 59% identified as currently laid off, 18% are still employed but worried about layoffs, 15% identified as an ally, and 8% were students.

Workers shared powerful and inspiring stories about organizing amidst layoffs at Amazon, Washington Post Tech Guild, and Pinterest. Other speakers provided resources for laid-off workers, visions for organizing, and political context for understanding the way tech monopolies are increasing economic inequality — and lessons learned from fighting alongside gig workers for justice and economic democracy.

There were 382 messages in the chat on our Zoom call, with 537 emojis. 44% of those who registered said they would be interested in volunteering — and 81% of those on the call said the same. Because we're ready to get to work.

What Workers Told Us

In our breakout rooms, attendees shared resources, stories about the ways AI is impacting their workplaces, and insightful suggestions for organizing collective power. Five themes surfaced consistently:

• The job market is broken
• The unemployment system is not adequate
• Workers on this call want to build collective power together
• AI is both a threat and a tool
• Workers need basic rights education

Four Working Groups, Now Meeting Weekly

In response, we're officially launching four core working groups during the first week of March, meeting at 4pm PT / 7pm ET. Each working group is focused on a critical part of the fight:

• Layoff Crisis Support & Collective Bargaining — Mondays
• Job Search Community & Skill-Sharing / Civic Tech Projects — Tuesdays
• Participatory Action Research & Media — Wednesdays
• Policy & Advocacy — Thursdays

Regular Programming, Starting March 15th

Starting March 15th, we're launching a regular rhythm of virtual community spaces every weekday — all volunteer-led and free. Daily Standups run Monday through Friday at 8am PT / 11am ET: quick check-ins, shared goals and wins, and a place to ask for help. Job Search Community sessions run Monday and Wednesday at 11am PT / 2pm ET, with skillshares, mock interviews, resume reviews, and accountability. An Engineering & AI Learning Circle runs Tuesdays for hands-on sessions to learn tools and build skills together. Every other Sunday, we hold our Book Club — starting March 14th with "The Future We Need: Organizing for a Better Democracy in the 21st Century" by Erica Smiley and Sarita Gupta.

Volunteer Roles We're Filling Now

This movement runs on volunteers. Here are the roles we need right now:

• Working Group Leads & Co-Leads — Facilitate meetings and keep your group moving forward
• Platform Engineering & Design — Help us build our community platform and open source tools for layoff crisis support, solidarity job search, policy mapping, and study groups
• Peer Support & Mutual Aid Coordinators — Connect workers to resources, especially those facing urgent needs such as H-1B visa holders and healthcare gaps
• Research Volunteers — Help with data collection, policy analysis, and worker surveys
• Media & Design — Newsletter and video content, visual assets, social media, and strategic PR
• Event Coordinators — Help plan and run our future mass calls and community events

No experience required — just the willingness to show up. If you're ready to be part of building something, reach out at info@wwwrise.org or join us on our platform.