Bhairavi Desai founded the New York Taxi Workers Alliance in 1998, building the first collective bargaining voice for New York City’s largely immigrant taxi and for-hire vehicle drivers, a workforce explicitly excluded from federal labor protections. Saru Jayaraman co-founded Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United) in 2001, creating a national organization advocating for improved wages, working conditions, and labor rights across the U.S. restaurant industry.
