The Greater Washington Community Foundation has teamed up with Washington Nationals Philanthropies to launch the Get Shift Done DMV initiative.
With unemployment claims spiking to record levels, Get Shift Done is helping people earn a basic income while also meeting the needs of the food insecure. The initiative will coordinate, schedule, and pay adversely affected hourly workers in the hospitality industry to work shifts for local food access providers.
Get Shift Done DMV, with founding investments from The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation, Capital One, the A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation, and the Bainum Family Foundation, will provide wages of $15 an hour to workers left jobless by the coronavirus pandemic. These workers are filling the critical roles of providing meals for neighbors in need that, prior to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, were performed by volunteers. The first batch of workers will report for their first day of work on Saturday, April 25, and more shifts and partners will be added on a rolling basis.
Get Shift Done was originally launched by Communities Foundation of Texas and Dallas business and community leaders in partnership with Shiftsmart and the North Texas Food Bank to fill the gap between the reduction of volunteers and the increased need among food banks and other nonprofits with those from the food and service industry in need of supplemental income. The platform has been able to serve 1 million meals per week while providing more than $250,000 of wages to 1,000 workers per week. Get Shift Done is now launching in other cities, municipalities, and counties across the country. Bringing this successful initiative to the DMV will fill a critical gap as food access providers face unprecedented demand for their services while also struggling with a shortfall in volunteers.
Your gift, no matter the size, will have a deep impact in our community. By contributing to the Get Shift Done DMV Fund, you help local restaurant workers help nonprofits, who in turn help our neighbors in need.
“We know that missing even one paycheck can mean members of our community, especially the region’s lower-wage and hourly workers, struggle to pay rent, afford groceries, and otherwise provide for their families,” said Tonia Wellons, President and CEO of the Greater Washington Community Foundation. “Our nonprofit partners and other organizations have stepped in to fill huge gaps created by this crisis, but there is more that we can and must do as a community. We are proud to partner to bring Get Shift Done to DMV in order to connect impacted workers directly to emergency food distribution providers throughout the region.”
“Food insecurity is both a systemic problem and an ever-increasing concern for families across the DMV. Through our work to open Nationals Park as a cooking and packaging site for meals and delivering grants to on-the-ground partners getting food to those who need it most, it was evident that even more was needed to meet demand,” said Nationals Philanthropies CEO Tal Alter. “Get Shift Done complements and extends the incredible coordination of food banks and providers across the region while simultaneously filling critical packaging, preparation, and delivery roles with members of our local hospitality community who are out of work.”
“The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation is proud to be a seed funder of this innovative effort which connects our colleagues in the hospitality industry with the critical and growing need for labor in our region’s food system. Food security was a crisis before the COVID-19 pandemic and has since grown to staggering levels. Concurrently, the hospitality workforce has suffered tremendously and we are thrilled to have an opportunity to address two of the Foundation’s top priorities through this investment,” stated Mieka Wick, Executive Director, The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation.
“As part of Capital One’s broader community response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve been working closely with our nonprofit partners to address crucial needs of the most vulnerable populations, including hunger relief and supporting the food and dining community,” said Andy Navarrete, Head of External Affairs, Capital One Financial. “We are proud to support Get Shift Done’s DMV initiative that is providing jobs, filling the much-needed gap in volunteer shifts and getting food to those in need. We will continue to marshal our resources – our funds, digital tools, reach and expertise during these uncertain times to help in the collective recovery.”
"The A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation is eager to support innovative programs that solve today's problems. As we collectively grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, we are pleased to join with our local partners and the Get Shift Done team to launch the program in the Washington, DC region," says Joe Del Guercio, President and CEO, A. James & Alice B. Clark Foundation.
“The shortcomings of our regional food system ― which already make it difficult to get fresh, healthy, affordable food to communities that need it most ― are being intensified by the COVID-19 crisis,” says David Daniels, CEO and President of the Bainum Family Foundation. “As part of our food-security work, we are pleased to support the Get Shift Done DMV effort. It will have an immediate impact, providing both much-needed jobs to displaced workers and nutritious meals for families and individuals who are struggling financially right now.”
Today Get Shift Done DMV launches with Shiftsmart technology to register workers for shifts with local food access providers. The Shiftsmart platform and operations team manage the onboarding, matching, scheduling, dispatching, and routing of workers to perform shifts. Interested restaurants, nonprofit partners, and individual workers can visit getshiftdone.org/dmv to access sign-up portals.
About Washington Nationals Philanthropies
The Washington Nationals strive to become a civic partner to every Washingtonian interested in making a positive difference in our region and a leading philanthropic organization in professional sports. As the official charitable arm of the Washington Nationals, Nationals Philanthropies is a new entity that replaces the Dream Foundation. Building on the success of the foundation’s first decade in Washington, we aspire to an even bolder, more ambitious philanthropic vision that continues to align with the work of the Youth Baseball Academy while building an enhanced and cohesive platform for civic engagement that extends far beyond the Academy walls. This new platform will catalyze the energy of Nationals fans, and the generosity and philanthropic goals of Nationals players, corporate champions, and community partners to invest philanthropic dollars with, through, and to Nationals Philanthropies – fueling even greater good for a better Washington region. More details coming soon at nats4good.org. Follow us to stay up to date on the latest news and events.
About Greater Washington Community Foundation
The Greater Washington Community Foundation exists to Build Thriving Communities by guiding strategic philanthropy, providing leadership on critical issues, promoting civic engagement, and inspiring local giving. Founded in 1973, we are the region’s largest local funder and have invested nearly $1.3 billion to build more equitable, just, and enriching communities where all residents can thrive. We recently launched the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund to rapidly raise and deploy critical resources to nonprofits addressing the urgent health and economic needs of disproportionately impacted communities. To date, we have mobilized more than $6.5 million in community support and made nearly $4 million in grants to relief and recovery efforts that are supporting our most vulnerable neighbors.