In May 2022, the Democrat-led House passed a resolution guaranteeing staff protection, which set the stage for the Congressional Workers Union to start organizing Hill offices. The push came amid broader calls for better pay and working conditions after decades of stagnant staff wages. By the end of 2022, staff in the offices of 14 House Democrats had petitioned to hold union elections.
“We were shocked by how quickly the House was able to turn all these stories and frustrations into something concrete that actually led to a rules change,” Garbowit said. “So I wanted to do something that would get senators on the record and try to force them to have these conversations.”
Growing up, Garbowit never expected to work on the Hill. He studied philosophy at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, hardly a feeder school for government jobs. It was mostly by chance that he learned of an internship in Smith’s office, which turned into a job as a digital director.
In that role, Garbowit never dealt with the press or sat for interviews, and he was at first reluctant at the thought of speaking out in favor of unions with the launch of his tracker. He considered publishing the site anonymously or using a pseudonym. Ultimately, though, he felt it was necessary to sign his name to the effort, at least in part to show current staffers that they could speak up without fear of reprisal.
“If a single staffer feels a little more empowered to talk about what they’ve experienced in their workplace and how they can make a productive change, that, to me, is just incredible,” Garbowit said.