Legislative and Political Organizer

Careerwebsite; Tualatin (OR); Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

The Legislative and Political Organizer will coordinate membership activities to support public policy and government relations objectives for the Oregon Nurses Association.

This role builds relationships with Oregon lawmakers, recruits volunteers, develops policy messaging, and staffs coalition efforts statewide, with hybrid work and travel during sessions.

Qualifications

• Experience interacting with elected officials and government relations professionals.
• Experience organizing volunteers for public policy advocacy and political campaigns.
• Well-developed written and verbal communication skills.
• Bachelor's degree in related field OR 4 years applicable experience.
• Three or more years of relevant political experience preferred.
• Research and reporting skills.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate legislative campaigns and testimony to support priorities.
• Build and maintain relationships with Oregon legislators and lobbies in support of our policy priorities.
• Identify, recruits and trains members and supportive non-members for campaigns.
• Plan and executes strategic action for base building and mobilization around policy priorities.
• Develop messaging and communication materials for weekly emails, action alerts, website and media campaigns.
• Coordinate action plans and meeting agendas for Cabinet on Health Policy and ON-PAC.
• Develop systems to track advocacy and outreach statewide and manage activist lists.
• Represent ONA at coalitions and community events as directed.
• Must be able to travel, staff events, and participate in campaign activities outside the office.

Skills

Policy analysis

Volunteer mobilization

Written communication

Verbal communication

Campaign planning

Public policy advocacy

Interacting with officials

Education

Bachelor's degree or 4 years applicable experience

3+ years political experience preferred

Job description

JOB SUMMARY

The Legislative and Political Organizer is responsible for coordinating membership activities that support the public policy and government relations objectives as set forth by the Cabinet on Health Policy, Oregon Nurse PAC, the ONA Board of Directors and the Director of Government Relations. The position represents ONA members in various political coalitions, before the State Legislature, and other public bodies, and assists ONA’s organizing activities with a health and labor policy emphasis.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Works with Director of Government Relations to prepare legislative campaigns and testimony to support ONA priorities.
• Builds and maintains relationships with Oregon legislators and lobbies in support of our policy priorities.
• Identifies, recruits and trains members and supportive non-members for effective grassroots action legislative, candidate, and issue campaigns.
• Plans and executes strategic action for base building and mobilization around policy priorities, elected officials, and candidates to increase the political capacity of ONA at the community, state and federal levels.
• Works in collaboration with the Director of Government Relations to develop messaging and communication materials for weekly emails, action alerts, ONA website, paid and earned media campaigns, BU Newsletters, the Oregon Nurse News, presentations and program materials while participating in the planning and implementation of the ONA communication objectives.
• Communicates action plan to staff in other departments, students and nursing schools, and coalition partners to integrate ONA’s advocacy goals.
• Coordinates and executes action plans and meeting agendas for the Cabinet on Health Policy, ON-PAC with the Director of Government Relations. Attends all meetings and executes needed follow up.
• Develops and maintains a system to track advocacy and outreach efforts statewide including building and managing an activist list and the voter file.
• Represents ONA at various coalitions and community events as directed.
• Communicate appropriately to target audience, whether staff, members, legislators, or others.
• Respond to member requests and communications in a timely manner.
• Perform other duties and assignments as directed by the Director of Government Relations.
• Must be able to travel, set up for, and staff events, and attend meetings and participate in campaign activities outside of the office.
• Serves as a resource to other program area staff.
• Attendance at ONA convention and representation of ONA at meetings of outside professional and regulatory groups.
• Attendance at all staff meetings.
• Other duties as assigned.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

This position has no supervisory responsibilities.

JOB EXPECTATIONS/COMPETENCIES

Job Knowledge: Must possess and continually update requisite knowledge and understanding of assigned duties, responsibilities, policies, procedures and compliance requirements to perform the position.

Work Product: Must demonstrate quality, including accuracy and thoroughness, in work required for the position. Must plan and complete acceptable quantity of work within deadlines.

Member Focus: Must consistently exhibit proper conduct with ONA members through verbal and written communications. This includes listening, understanding member expectations/perspective and acknowledging and responding to concerns in a timely and helpful manner.

Dependability/Accountability: Must follow through on assignments and take ownership of work. Must be reliable and responsible, and adhere to procedures, practices and work schedule.

Collaboration/Teamwork: Must demonstrate cooperation and teamwork, and value and seek input and expertise of others. Must contribute to the team environment by working effectively with others on the team, and treat co-workers with respect, honesty and fairness.

Communication: Must communicate effectively and respectfully with co-workers and associates verbally and in writing. Must follow instructions and share information appropriately.

Commitment to JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) & Welcoming Behavior in the Community: Must create a welcoming and learning environment with productive and positive workplace relationships. Must build and support a diverse and inclusive community by demonstrating respect in the workplace.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

This position requires the following:

• Experience in interacting with elected officials, staff of elected officials and other government relations professionals.
• Experience organizing volunteers to participate in public policy advocacy and political campaigns.
• Well-developed written and verbal communication skills.
• A baccalaureate degree in related field OR 4 years applicable experience.
• Three or more years of relevant political experience preferred.
• Research and reporting skills.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, AND/OR REGISTRATIONS

This position doesn't require any certificates, licenses, or registrations.

QUALIFICATIONS

Ability to perform essential job duties with or without reasonable accommodation and without posing a direct threat to the safety or health of employees or others. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential duties.

Other qualifications desired:

• Experience in policy analysis and policy development.
• Must have the ability to be consistently accurate and to be efficient in the performance of the employee’s duties.
• Must be able to prioritize work, set, and meet realistic deadlines. Must be able to meet member needs in a timely fashion. Must notify appropriate staff of problems or delays in completing work responsibilities. Must be able to follow through and work on projects with minimal supervision. Must keep supervisor apprised of availability and work schedule, and follow ONA policies for reporting illness, emergencies, timecard, and Beck record submission.
• Must have the ability to act in the absence of instructions.
• Must demonstrate the ability to work harmoniously with others towards common goals and objectives as a member of the team; willing to both share credit and accept criticism when appropriate.
• Must exercise judgment in ways that support the mission and goals of ONA and make decisions in a timely manner based on both principles and practical considerations. Must clearly communicate decisions to those who need to be informed and demonstrates ability to change work priority in response to emerging needs.
• Must demonstrate appropriate business appearance, speech, and presentation in compliance with the Association and program policies and procedures.
• Must show a willingness to utilize education opportunities to improve job performance.
• Must recognize flaws or limitations in work processes and make suggestions for improvement. Demonstrates willingness for flexibility to conflicting demands for time or resources and realistically evaluates outcomes and accepts responsibility for work product and overall assignment.
• Must convey information in a concise, accurate, and timely way, and be willing to adjust mode of communication so that it is appropriate for target audience. Must keep supervisor and team members informed of emerging issues and provides information relevant to ongoing projects of team members.
• Must be willing to evaluate previously agreed upon goals and establish personal achievements or program/department need o work towards meeting them in the upcoming evaluation period.

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

Must have and maintain an advanced knowledge of MS Office software.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORK ENVIRONMENT

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential duties of this job. The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential duties of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential duties.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee must be able to sit for prolonged periods of time in an office environment. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. This position requires frequent computer use. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, color vision, distance vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet.

OTHER

Hybrid schedules are available as appropriate for job duties and subject to supervisor approval. During legislative sessions, the organizer is expected to be in the State Capitol in Salem most weekdays. During election cycles, the organizer will travel to targeted districts. We represent healthcare workers who work across the state in 24/7 facilities. By the nature of the work, there are times where travel, working nights and overnight stays are required.

DISCLAIMER:

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this classification. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and/or skills required of all personnel so classified.