Doing Well by Doing Good? Employee Hardship Funds, worker retention, and mutual aid

Employee Hardship Funds (EHFs) are a fast-growing form of employer-driven worker mutual aid. Over 300 firms, including nine of the ten largest retailers, maintained an EHF as of December 2022. However, little is known about their effects. Political scientist John Ahlquist will examine the extent to which EHFs affect workers’ feelings of financial security, workplace attachment, and support for unionization. He will conduct surveys and survey experiments for his study.