Restaurant Opportunities Centers United Inc

Overview

Mission

To serve as a resource and advocacy organization for low-income and otherwise disadvantaged restaurant workers across the country, providing job training, support services, research and advocacy for needy restaurant workers and the general public.

What it reported doing in 2023

ROC United has been constantly inspired by a community of thousands of members, supporters, funders and staff by its side. They are the reasons why we believe we can improve the lives of restaurant workers and make the restaurant industry a better place to work in our lifetime. In summary, as a national organization, we are proud of what we accomplished in 2023 Reintroduced the Restaurant Workers Bill of Rights, in a day of action in front of the State Capitol Building with dozens of restaurant workers from New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington, DC, Virginia, Michigan, and New Orleans. Representative Rashida Tlaib MI-12, along with 19 original sponsors, introduced H.R. 702 in Congress. The bill was drafted in collaboration with ROC United and endorsed by 60 organizations. Hosted an in-person roundtable discussion with Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su and restaurant workers and operators in New York City. The roundtable centered on the need for heat standards, job protections, workforce development programs to support good quality jobs, and ROC Uniteds partnership with th

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 69% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
010939141
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2023
Forms available
Form 990 2023
Headquarters
New York, NY, USA
Phone
2122436900
Rating
75
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Civil Rights

Official website

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 79
  • Accountability: 76
  • Sustainability: 26
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 83.3%; rating input score 83
  • Fundraising efficiency: $12.29 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 66.7%; rating input score 67; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -22.1%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.43; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.2; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 11%; rating input score 25; 25th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -9.7% per year; rating input score 0; 2nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -5% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 83.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 6 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $4.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $188K · 13 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 29 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 annual filings from 2016 to 2023
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • SEKOU SIBY (FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $188,418 total reported compensation
  • ALICIA RENEE FARRIS (CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER): $128,824 total reported compensation
  • AMI ELAINE AWAD (DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR): $123,842 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: FY2023.