Our 2021 Impact
Uplifting Workers During COVID
2021 challenged people’s health and livelihoods in unprecedented ways. As the COVID-19 pandemic persisted, so did our commitment and ability to meet worker’s needs.
Our priority: supporting the emotional and economic well-being of vulnerable workers. We did that across last year through our immediate, confidential text line. We also expanded our support via written resources and content. We changed lives by meeting people where they are with services they need.
30,000 workers in need supported
through our text line and digital resources.
We connected with thousands of under-resourced and frontline workers across the United States — early childhood educators at small daycares struggling with stress, pharmacy workers fearful that COVID safety measures weren’t being followed, healthcare workers who were being bullied and uncertain about what to do, manufacturing workers frustrated by lack of a living wage — all looking for a path forward.
Our incredible, trained volunteers are both coaches and guides — helping open up potential paths and providing emotional and tactical support so that workers find a next step that works for them.
In 2021, that next step was powerful. Over 92% of people who connected with Empower Work reported improved mental health.
2021 was also a year of transformation for Empower Work. Our team laid out a roadmap to expand our service to meet greater needs and invest in larger changes to policies, practices, and approaches that will build healthier, more equitable workplaces for millions of Americans. The need is tremendous: 40M Americans lack access to resources during critical, livelihood altering experiences. We believe that we must not just meet people in their moment of need, we must radically reshape work to prevent many of these experiences from happening. So that all people can thrive at work.
92% of people
who connected with Empower Work reported improved mental health.
Learn more about our impact in this brief video:
Transforming lives in 2021
People come to Empower Work during some of their hardest, most gut-wrenching experiences:
When they’ve been fired and are worried about feeding their family and paying rent,
When they’ve been in increasingly uncomfortable interactions with a manager that leave them feeling physically and emotionally unsafe,
When they feel deeply disrespected, underpaid, and mistreated at both of their jobs, and lack the time and confidence to find a new job,
When they can’t sleep and are sick at the idea of going to work due to bullying, harassment, or discrimination,
When their employer won’t support their health or that of their family during a pandemic,
When they hate the idea of staying in their job but feel stuck and are unsure how to start a job search.
Connecting with a trained peer counselor transforms the moment and the future. We often see a vivid metamorphosis as conversations unfold — a person who started off feeling like they had no options or agency will end their conversation with hope and an action plan.
We’ve learned from post-use surveys and follow-ups where people share what’s happened since reaching out, that our support resulted in mindset shifts, new action plans, and an increased sense of optimism for the future.
How people feel after…
“Empowered, informed, validated and ready to vocalize my needs.”
“More in control of my destiny.”
“I felt clearer about what I needed to do and that I had a game plan to do it.”
As hard as 2021 was, we’re proud that our impact increased as we supported more people:
95%
would recommend us to a friend.
92%
report improved mental health.
88%
took an action that felt right for them.
“Thank you for creating this. It is so valuable and crucial for employees to have something like this at their fingertips. Summer, my counselor, really was able to grasp my issues and points and guide me into a more confident state.”
“I know people who have killed themselves over adverse work issues. Then when I experienced my own, I didn't know what to do. Empower Work helped me verbalize what happened. The CEO listened! The CEO indicated that the entire organization is going through a complete change because of what happened to me. I am thrilled because Empower Work helped me. This resolution with the CEO has inspired me to trust again.”
“Grace was very helpful and understanding and really helped me ..[go] through and organize my thoughts. I feel 100% better and I feel more secure in what I need to do next.”
2021 Text Line Trends
One of the biggest trends we saw in 2021 was that discrimination, bullying, and harassment tripled compared to 2020. It mirrored in many ways the continued complexities, stress, political polarity (and intensity) playing out across the United States. For example, discrepancies over workplace vaccine policies or compliance by coworkers might quickly escalate to bullying or threats.
Paired with that, our team noticed a surge in people speaking up and amplifying others. The urgency and intensity seemed to lead to an increase in speaking truth, though frequently tempered by fear about financial security.
Some key text line trends from 2021:
Over 30,000 people supported through our text line and digital resources
A 20% increase in new text line conversations
A sizeable increase in repeat users — 10-15% of those we supported had used the service more than once
The number of conversations involving discrimination, bullying, and harassment tripled compared to 2020
Conversations related to job loss or career decisions nearly doubled over last year
Unemployment needs had a 30% increase
Mental health, financial needs, legal needs, and COVID as a factor in their situation stayed the same vs. the previous year
The impact of disability, race, and gender in work-related grievances remained prominent
Who we support
We help workers across every part of the U.S. — in rural areas and major cities. Those we support often work in places with fewer than 50 employees.
78% identify as a woman
15% identify as LGBTQ
42% are under 28
51% identify as a person of color
40% are lower wage workers
People in Tech (IT), Health & Human Services, Retail, Service, Education
Dedicated volunteers power our support line
Our support would not be possible without the volunteers who power our text line every day.
People are overwhelmingly motivated to become peer counselors because they want to help underrepresented workers who are struggling. Many volunteers have personally experienced difficult work situations and understand the value of providing a sounding board to brainstorm possible next steps. Others have personally benefited from having a support system and want to pay it forward to help those who may not be fortunate enough to have access to such resources. Our volunteers come from a wide variety of professional backgrounds and include social workers, HR specialists, executive coaches, engineers, product managers, firefighters, chefs, and more.
By becoming a trained peer counselor with Empower Work, volunteers are able to not only give back, but also develop their own professional skills, becoming better co-workers, managers, and leaders in the process. Through our training, volunteers develop key skills and learn everything from how to enhance their empathy for others to honing their communication and coaching skills.
93%use the skills they learned through Empower Work in their own workplaces
90% improved their ability to coach people to take positive steps towards a goal
86% became more comfortable navigating difficult conversations
79% became more aware of diverse workplace experiences
“Volunteering is energizing for me, especially when I get to have an impactful conversation. There are moments where you can really feel the way it shifts the person’s approach and that’s really gratifying.”
“I would say that the skills I have learned through volunteering have also been hugely helpful in navigating difficult conversations in my personal life. They have additionally empowered me to more effectively offer support to my partner and my friends when they are needing an ear—for work-related issues but also for challenges totally unrelated to work.”
“I learn from every conversation. Whether it's learning a new work dynamic struggle, new resources, new thoughts or ideas, or learning what question/skill might not have worked. Every shift I am learning and challenging myself, which is allowing me to grow more positively.”
Thank you to our community
Our work is only possible because of the incredible community of partners, supporters, volunteers, and champions that has grown over time. We are deeply grateful for everyone who generously commits time, energy, resources, and philanthropic support to make our impact possible. In 2021, that included more than 300 donors, multiple pro-bono products and services, and thousands of volunteer hours.
That philanthropic support, paired with earned revenue from trainings and partnerships, helps us continue and grow our mission.
