A.J. Mendoza
Campaign Organizer
Email: aj@jwjpdx.org
Direct Office Line: 971-242-8704
Pronouns: he/him/his
A.J. hails from Gladstone Oregon and he graduated from George Fox University in 2013 with a double major in Political Science and History. He was the first student at the university to publicly come out and he went on to help start an underground club for LGBTQ students and their allies called Common Ground, and he continues to advocate as a part of the LGBTQ alumni association called OneGeorgeFox. He is a minister within the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and serves as the clerk of the Equity and Inclusion Committee of Sierra-Cascades Yearly Meeting of Friends. A.J. has worked as an organizer at the Oregon Student Association and at Basic Rights Oregon. He served as a Steward and as President for AFSCME Local 1790, and has become especially passionate about organizing workers in the non-profit sector. A.J. has experienced first hand the difference between a union and non-union workplace, and is excited to be able to do his part to strengthen the movement as a whole at Portland Jobs with Justice.
Justin Norton-Kertson
Solidarity Organizer
Email: justin@jwjpdx.org
Direct Office Line: 971-242-8702
Pronouns: he/him/his, they/them/theirs
Born in San Diego, California, Justin grew up on the US-Mexico border in a very diverse environment, which helped to create a strong sense of international solidarity that has become a guiding value of his work.
Justin attended the University of California, Irvine where he became active in organizing around environmental and consumer rights issues, as well houselessness issues after a more than one year stint of living houseless himself. It was at UCI where Justin got his first taste of labor organizing by heading up undergraduate outreach efforts during the UC grad students’ successful unionization campaign in the late 1990s. He earned a degree in history from UCI in 2003, and went on to become a high school social studies teacher.
Job losses and uncertain economic conditions during the “Great Recession” brought Justin and his family to Portland in 2009. In February of 2015 Justin co-founded and became the lead organizer of 15 Now PDX, and he was the campaign manager for the Oregonians for 15 ballot measure effort. Prior to accepting the Solidarity Organizer position at JwJ, he worked as a community organizer for UFCW Local 555.
Will Layng
Executive Director
Email: will@jwjpdx.org
Direct Office Line: 971-242-8705
Pronouns: he/him/his
Originally from Atlanta, Georgia, Will moved to Portland in 2004 to work for SEIU Local 49. On June 1, 2017 he officially joins Portland Jobs With Justice after 13 years of organizing workers and their community allies for economic and social justice across a wide range of low wage private sector industries with Local 49. Will brings deep experience in strategic campaigning, staff development, creative actions, and new forms of worker organization to JwJ. Will has been on the Board of JWJ for 4 years. He lives with his wife, Remy, and daughter, Selma, in Northeast Portland.
Executive Board
Co-Chair
Amanda Hill, OFNHP
Co-Chair
Semir Said, SEIU Local 49
Co-Chair
Grant Swanson, AFSCME Local 88
& Right 2 Dream Too
Co-Chair
Ibrahim Bilal Mubarak, Right 2 Survive
Faith-Labor Chair
Joe Rastatter
Fundraising Chair
Maureen Crawford, SEIU Local 503
Global Justice Chair
Paige Shell-Spurling, PSCASC
Health Care Committee Chair
Beth Kerwin
Immigrant Rights Chair
Amanda Aguilar Shank, Enlace
JwJ Staff, Executive Director
Will Layng
JwJ Staff, Solidarity Organizer
Justin Norton-Kertson
Media Chair
Robert Camarillo, Ironworkers NW
Membership Chair
Jamie Partridge, NALC Branch 82, ISO
Outreach Chair
Deborah Hall, Oregon Coalition of Black Trade Unionists
Personnel Chair
Timothy Welp, OSEA
Portland Rising Chair
Martin Hart-Landsberg
Rules Chair
Zev Nicholson, AFSCME Council 75
Secretary
Shamus Cooke, SEIU Local 503,
Portland Tenants United
Treasurer
Pam Phan, Community Alliance of Tenants
Our Funders
In addition to our coalition member organizations and individual donors, our funders include:
