Who We Are
At Nava, we work with government agencies to provide digital services that are simple, accessible, and effective for all. Now, a supermajority of eligible employees have come together to form our union, Nava United, which is affiliated with the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Tech Workers Union Local 1010. We believe that forming our union will promote transparency, ensure equity, increase staff well-being and retention, attract new talent, and add to the long list of reasons why we are proud to work at Nava.
As a union, we will build a stronger, more sustainable organization for our staff, our clients, and most importantly the people we serve. We act in the conviction that forming a union will bring us into better alignment with our values as individuals and as an organization.
Our Values
We draw our inspiration to unionize from Nava's own values, each of which speaks directly to the necessity of this step:
Be active stewards.
We know first-hand how important it is to care for the communities we serve, and to center their experiences and needs in our work. It is just as important that we care for each other, and to extend our stewardship to nurturing an equitable and sustainable culture. Only by being active stewards of our own community can we succeed in serving others.
Pursue the root cause.
The foundation of Nava's business is its people. We are the roots of this organization, from which all our success grows. A union will strengthen that foundation by ensuring that the needs of our people are well attended to, and that all Nava workers have the support and care they need to excel in their work—not only today, but in the months and years ahead.
Think long-term.
It's far too easy to get caught up in the day-to-day challenges that our work presents. When we lose sight of our long-term need for a sustainable and inclusive culture, we do so at our own peril. A union will create space for us to continuously and creatively work together for a Nava that can make real generational change, without causing burnout and harm along the way.
Build together.
We know the challenges ahead are great. We believe that Nava will be better positioned to meet them if we work together at all levels of the organization. A collaborative and enthusiastic partnership between leadership and our union will ensure that when obstacles inevitably present themselves, we will have the knowledge, experience, and skill to move past them—together.
Inclusion is essential.
A Nava that incorporates a diverse array of insights and expertise is a stronger Nava. Our union will ensure that Navanauts at all levels will play a key role in designing the future of Nava, bringing renewed urgency to our efforts to build a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization. By coming together as equals, we will find more resilient and holistic solutions to the problems we face.
Progress takes work.
For the past eighteen months, Navanauts have met multiple times a week to talk about how we work together, and what we can do to make Nava the best place to work in civic tech. Among us we have dedicated countless hours to organizing, to serving on working groups and ERGs, to counseling each other through difficult days, and to coming up with creative strategies for serving our clients and our communities. We know this work, and we welcome it.