Rachel Lauter

Rachel Lauter is the Executive Director of Working Washington and the Fair Work Center, two Seattle-based workers rights organizations aligning to become a one-stop-shop for low wage worker organizing, advocacy, education, outreach, and legal services. The organization most recently helped pass a historic Domestic Workers Bill of Rights in Seattle, the most expansive overtime protections in the country, and protections for gig workers during Covid. The organization is currently engaged in advocacy campaigns around gig workers rights, restaurant worker protections, unemployment insurance, and more. Prior to moving to Seattle, Rachel served as the Deputy Chief of Staff and Director of Appointments for Mayor de Blasio in New York City. In that role, she served as the Mayor’s senior personnel advisor, making hundreds of appointments and hiring the most diverse group of senior leaders in New York City history. She also oversaw the operational, administrative, and fiscal functions of the Mayor’s office, served as a policy advisor to the Mayor on issues related to campaign finance, election administration, and voting, and drafted and negotiated dozens of local laws. Prior to joining the de Blasio administration, she served as an Assistant Counsel to Governor Andrew Cuomo and as a federal law clerk. Lauter is the co-founder of New Kings Democrats, a Brooklyn-based reform- minded political organization. She is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Law School, where she served as President of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau, the oldest student-run legal services provider in the country.