A national network of businesses fighting authoritarianism and economic inequality — rebuilding our economy from the ground up through community reinvestment, worker equity, and fair wages for all.
5
Core Pillars
50
States Targeted
∞
Community Impact
1
Unified Standard
Why We Exist
Resistance Starts With How You Pay.
Authoritarianism doesn't arrive overnight. It's built on economic desperation — on workers with no options, communities with no investment, and wealth concentrated in the hands of those who buy political power with it.
The Economic Resistance Alliance was built as a direct counter to that dynamic. When businesses pay fair wages, reinvest locally, and share ownership with workers, they don't just build better companies. They build communities that are harder to exploit, harder to divide, and harder to control.
But no business does this alone. ERA members work together — leveraging their collective influence, purchasing power, and community presence to create an economy that works for everyone. The more businesses that join, the greater the impact. That's not idealism. That's strategy.
Membership Standards
The Five Pillars
💰
Living Wages
Pay that sustains real lives — not the legal minimum, but the human minimum.
🏘️
Community Reinvestment
Revenue that stays local and goes back to the neighborhoods that support the business.
🔗
Ethical Sourcing
Supply chains built on fairness and full transparency — no exploitation at any link.
🌱
Environmental Standards
Accountable operations that treat the planet as a stakeholder, not a resource to deplete.
🤝
Worker Equity
Pathways to ownership and shared prosperity built into how the business runs.
"Economic democracy is the bedrock of political democracy. We are building both."
Authoritarianism feeds on economic desperation. ERA member businesses are proof that a different economy is possible — one that strengthens communities, empowers workers, and makes people harder to manipulate and control.
ERA Members
Businesses Leading the Way
Bath, Body & Lifestyle
My Cluck Hut
Nashville, TN
CommunityEnvironment
Apparel & Impact Commerce
Dark Yarn
National
CommunityEthical Sourcing
Food & Beverage
Commonground Coffee
Portland, OR
Living WagesWorker Equity
Construction
Solidarity Build Co.
Detroit, MI
CommunityEthical Sourcing
About ERA
The Economic Resistance Alliance was founded on a simple but radical idea: that businesses have the power — and the responsibility — to build the economy we deserve, and to actively resist the forces that would strip that power away.
We are a national network of independent businesses that have committed, in writing and in practice, to five core standards: living wages, community reinvestment, ethical sourcing, environmental accountability, and worker equity. ERA members don't just sign a pledge. They open their books, meet the standard, and join a movement.
But ERA is more than an economic project. Authoritarianism thrives where economic desperation exists. Concentrated wealth funds concentrated power. When working people are economically precarious, they become easier to control, easier to divide, and easier to exploit — politically and economically. ERA exists to break that cycle. A networked economy of fairly-paid, community-rooted, worker-owned businesses is one of the most durable forms of resistance available to ordinary people. This is not CSR window dressing. This is structural change — business by business, community by community, against every system that benefits from keeping people down.
What Drives Us
Our Core Values
01
Accountability
ERA membership is not honorary. Members are verified annually against our five pillars. No exceptions, no asterisks.
02
Solidarity
We grow together. ERA members refer to each other, support each other's workers, and advocate collectively for policy change.
03
Transparency
Real change requires real data. ERA members publish their wage data, sourcing practices, and community investment annually.
04
Equity
We center the people who have been most excluded from economic power — workers, communities of color, and small business owners.
05
Action
We don't wait for permission or policy. ERA businesses lead by doing — and prove that the alternative economy is not only possible but profitable.
06
Community
Every business is embedded in a community. ERA insists that community wellbeing is not separate from business success — it is the foundation of it.
Why It Matters Now
Economic Power Is Political Power.
Authoritarianism does not arrive all at once. It is built slowly, on a foundation of economic anxiety, hollowed-out communities, and concentrated wealth that purchases political influence. When people are desperate, they are susceptible. When businesses extract rather than invest, communities weaken. When workers have no ownership stake in what they build, they have no stake in the system worth defending.
ERA is a direct counter to that dynamic. We believe that economic democracy is the bedrock of political democracy. A business that pays fair wages, reinvests locally, and shares ownership with its workers is not just a good business — it is an act of resistance against every force that profits from inequality and instability.
Against Wage Theft & Exploitation
We refuse to participate in economic systems that keep workers poor and dependent while funneling profit upward to those who already hold disproportionate power.
Against Monopoly & Consolidation
The consolidation of markets into the hands of a few corporations is not efficiency — it is the economic form of authoritarianism. ERA champions independent, community-embedded businesses as a structural alternative.
Against the Weaponization of Poverty
Economic precarity is used as a tool of political control. ERA member businesses are proof that it doesn't have to be this way — and they make their communities harder to manipulate.
For Worker Power & Democratic Economics
Ownership changes everything. When workers have a stake in what they build, they build stronger communities — and stronger communities are the only lasting defense against authoritarian drift.
ERA Advisory Council
The Standard Bearers
The ERA Advisory Council is composed of member businesses that have not only met our five-pillar standard — they have raised it. These are the organizations building the new economy in practice, every day. They set the benchmarks, share their playbooks, and guide the ERA network on what's possible when businesses fully commit to equity, dignity, and community.
Role of the Advisory Council
Setting the Standard for the New Economy
Advisory Council members don't just meet ERA standards — they help define what those standards should be. They work directly with ERA staff to refine our verification framework, develop best-practice guidance for the network, and serve as living proof that a more equitable economy isn't theoretical. It's operational.
What Council Members Do
01
Shape ERA Standards
Advise on annual updates to membership requirements and verification criteria.
02
Publish Their Playbooks
Share wage structures, sourcing frameworks, and ownership models with the full ERA network.
03
Mentor New Members
Offer direct guidance to businesses working toward full ERA compliance across all five pillars.
04
Represent the Network
Speak publicly on behalf of the ERA model at events, in press, and in policy conversations.
How to Qualify
Full Five-Pillar Verification
Council members must be verified across all five ERA pillars — not just a majority. No gaps, no waivers.
Track Record
Full Five-Pillar Compliance
Members must demonstrate verified compliance across all five ERA pillars before applying for Advisory Council status. No gaps, no waivers.
Nomination
Application & Board Approval
ERA members in good standing may apply for Advisory Council status. All applications are reviewed and approved by the ERA Board of Directors.
We're Building This Together
Open Positions
ERA is a movement in formation. We are actively seeking mission-aligned leaders to fill the following roles. If you believe the economy can be rebuilt from the ground up — and you're ready to do that work — we want to hear from you.
ED
Executive Director
Founding Leadership · Full-Time
Leads ERA's national strategy, coalition building, and public presence. We're looking for someone with deep roots in labor, cooperative economics, or economic justice organizing — and the drive to build something new.
DS
Director of Standards
Verification & Compliance · Full-Time
Owns the ERA membership verification framework. Ideal background includes supply chain ethics, labor standards, B Corp or cooperative development. This person makes sure our commitments are real.
ND
Network Director
Membership & Growth · Full-Time
Drives member recruitment, retention, and peer community across the ERA network. Experience in community organizing, cooperative development, or business association management preferred.
CD
Communications Director
Press & Narrative · Full-Time
Shapes ERA's public story — press, social media, member spotlights, and the broader movement narrative. We need someone who understands that how we talk about economic resistance matters as much as what we do.
PA
Policy Advisor
Advisory · Part-Time or Contract
Advises ERA on legislative developments affecting small business, labor, and cooperative economics. Ideal candidate has experience in policy advocacy, lobbying, or economic justice law.
BM
Board Members
Governance · Volunteer
ERA is forming its founding board. We seek business owners, economists, labor advocates, and community leaders who can provide strategic oversight and open doors. Commitment to ERA's anti-authoritarian, equity-first mission is required.
Join The Alliance
ERA membership is a commitment — not a badge. Before applying, read and understand our five membership standards. We verify every member annually.
Membership Requirements
The Standards
01
Living Wages
All full-time employees must be paid at or above the living wage for their region, as defined by the MIT Living Wage Calculator. Part-time and contract workers must be paid on a pro-rated equivalent basis. Wage data is reviewed annually.
02
Community Reinvestment
Members commit to reinvesting a minimum of 5% of annual net profit into their local community through direct donations, sponsorships, or community programs. Documentation is required.
03
Ethical Sourcing
Members must demonstrate that their primary suppliers meet baseline labor and safety standards. ERA provides a sourcing audit checklist. Members with complex supply chains are given a 12-month onboarding window to achieve compliance.
04
Environmental Standards
Members complete an ERA environmental self-assessment and commit to a measurable annual improvement goal. We do not require perfection — we require accountability, honesty, and progress.
05
Worker Ownership & Equity
Members must offer at least one pathway to worker ownership or profit-sharing. This can include equity grants, ESOPs, profit-sharing programs, or cooperative conversion. ERA advisors can help design a model appropriate to your business size.
Beyond Membership
The ERA Advisory Council
Membership is the floor, not the ceiling. The ERA Advisory Council is made up of businesses that have not only met all five pillars — they've led the way in how to build them. Council members set standards, share their models, and mentor new members across the network.
Advisory Council status can be applied for by any ERA member in good standing with full five-pillar compliance. Applications are reviewed and approved by the ERA Board of Directors. The path starts here — with joining ERA and doing the work.
1
Apply & Join ERA
Complete the application below. Meet our five-pillar standard. Get verified.
2
Lead by Example
Sustain full compliance across all five pillars. Participate in the network. Share what you know.
3
Apply for the Council
Once you've achieved full five-pillar compliance, submit an Advisory Council application. The ERA Board of Directors reviews and approves all appointments.
Membership Application
Apply Now
ERA Network
Member Directory
Every business listed here has been verified against ERA's five-pillar standard. Look for them, support them, and hold them to it.
ERA Advisory Council
Standard Bearers
These businesses have achieved full five-pillar verification and have been peer-nominated to guide the ERA network. They set the standard and share their model openly with every ERA member.
The soap company your mother warned you about — and one of the most mission-driven brands in the ERA network. My Cluck Hut makes natural, plant-based bath and body products with an irreverent personality and a clear purpose: people before profit. Their "Give a Cluck" program donates a portion of every sale to local and national nonprofits. With a Revolution Collection, a Pride Collection, and 1,265+ five-star reviews, they prove that community-driven commerce and a great product aren't mutually exclusive.
COUNCIL FOCUS: Community Giving & Sustainable Products
Apparel & Impact Commerce
Advisory Council
Dark Yarn
📍 National
Dark Yarn is proof that commerce can be an act of resistance. Every purchase directly funds democracy defense, equality initiatives, and humanitarian causes through The Reasoned Reality Project — with transparent contribution amounts per product. No outside investors, no private equity. The mission can't be overridden because no one is waiting on an exit.
COUNCIL FOCUS: Impact Commerce & Conscious Spending
Food & Beverage
Advisory Council
Commonground Coffee
📍 Portland, OR
Fully worker-owned cooperative with profit-sharing baked into governance. Sets the ERA benchmark for worker equity and transparent sourcing. Publishes its full wage and sourcing data annually as a model for the network.
Living WagesWorker EquityEthical SourcingCommunityEnvironment
COUNCIL FOCUS: Worker Ownership Models
Construction
Advisory Council
Solidarity Build Co.
📍 Detroit, MI
Pioneer in union-affiliated construction with 100% local hiring mandates and zero-emission job site standards. Their community reinvestment framework has become the ERA model for the trades industry.
Living WagesCommunityEthical SourcingEnvironmentWorker Equity
COUNCIL FOCUS: Community Reinvestment Frameworks
Technology
Advisory Council
Roots Digital
📍 Chicago, IL
B Corp digital agency that built a replicable equity-grant system for tech workers. Advises ERA on applying fair-economy standards in knowledge-economy industries where traditional labor models often don't apply.
Any ERA member with full five-pillar compliance can apply. Applications are reviewed and approved by the ERA Board of Directors.
General Membership
All Verified Members
Bath, Body & Lifestyle
My Cluck Hut
📍 Nashville, TN
Natural, plant-based bath and body brand with a strong community mission. Donates a portion of all proceeds to nonprofits via their "Give a Cluck" program. Products include soap bars, shampoo bars, insect repellent, candles, and apparel — including a Revolution Collection and Pride Collection.
CommunityEnvironmentEthical Sourcing
Food & Beverage
Commonground Coffee
📍 Portland, OR
Worker-owned coffee roaster and café collective committed to direct-trade sourcing and full profit sharing with all staff.
Living WagesWorker EquityEthical Sourcing
Construction
Solidarity Build Co.
📍 Detroit, MI
Union-affiliated general contractor prioritizing local hiring, apprenticeship programs, and green building standards.
CommunityEthical SourcingEnvironment
Retail
The Fair Market
📍 Atlanta, GA
Neighborhood grocery cooperative stocking 80% local and regional products. All employees earn above Atlanta living wage.
Living WagesCommunityEnvironment
Technology
Roots Digital
📍 Chicago, IL
B Corp digital agency offering equity stake to all employees after 2 years. Reinvests 8% of annual revenue into community tech education.
Worker EquityCommunityLiving Wages
Food & Beverage
Mesa Collective
📍 Albuquerque, NM
Latinx-owned restaurant group operating on a cooperative model. Sources 90% of ingredients from within 150 miles.
Ethical SourcingWorker EquityCommunity
Professional Services
Just Books CPA
📍 Oakland, CA
Accounting firm specializing in worker cooperative and small business finance. Offers sliding-scale pricing to ERA members.
Living WagesWorker Equity
Retail
Thread & Root
📍 Nashville, TN
Zero-waste apparel shop sourcing exclusively from domestic manufacturers with verified living-wage production.
Ethical SourcingEnvironmentLiving Wages
Construction
Green Block Builders
📍 Minneapolis, MN
Affordable housing contractor committed to zero-carbon construction methods and majority-employee-owned governance structure.
EnvironmentWorker EquityCommunity
ERA Press & Updates
News & Dispatches
Member Story · Economic Resistance & Mission · 2026
How Dark Yarn Is Leading the Economic Resistance Movement
Every time you spend money, that money goes somewhere. It funds a supply chain, generates profit, and flows toward whoever owns the business at the top. For decades, ordinary consumer spending has quietly funded the consolidation of power at the very top of the economic pyramid. Dark Yarn was built to interrupt that flow.
Dark Yarn is not a brand with a cause bolted on. The impact is the architecture. Every purchase funds democracy defense, equality initiatives, and humanitarian causes through The Reasoned Reality Project — with specific, transparent contribution amounts per product. No vague pledges. No seasonal campaigns. Just commerce designed to give power back to communities.
"Intentionally directing dollars toward socially responsible businesses is one of the most powerful ways ordinary people can reclaim influence from those who've consolidated it."
The forces working to dismantle democratic institutions aren't doing it with protests — they're doing it with money. You fight that with redirected economic power. It doesn't require sacrifice. It requires intention. Dark Yarn's Defiance Collection, Identity Sport line, and Courage by Jayne pieces were all built to make that intention visible.
ERA Launches National Membership Drive Targeting 500 Businesses by 2026
ERA announces a national expansion campaign prioritizing underserved communities and industries where fair-wage practices remain rare.
8 min read
Policy · Oct 2025
ERA Submits Comment on Federal Living Wage Proposal
ERA joined 47 business coalitions in submitting formal comment supporting a $20 federal minimum wage with regional cost-of-living adjustments.
4 min read
Report · Sep 2025
ERA Members Outperform Industry on Retention and Revenue
New data shows ERA-certified businesses saw 34% lower employee turnover and 18% higher year-over-year revenue growth vs. industry averages.
5 min read
Community · Aug 2025
Detroit's Solidarity Build Co. Completes 200th Affordable Housing Unit
ERA founding member Solidarity Build Co. hit a major milestone this summer, completing their 200th affordable housing unit in Detroit's Eastside neighborhoods, employing 100% local labor throughout.
5 min read
Interview · Jul 2025
"The Proof Is in the Payroll" — ERA Director on What Fair Wages Actually Cost
ERA Executive Director Marcus Johnson sits down to debunk the most common myth used to resist living wages: that businesses simply can't afford them.
7 min read
Guide · Jun 2025
The ERA Sourcing Audit: A Step-by-Step Guide for New Members
Not sure where to start on ethical sourcing? ERA's standards team walks through the full audit process for businesses at every stage of supply chain maturity.