Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project

What Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project does

Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project (FLAP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization incorporated in Illinois on February 8, 1999, and headquartered at 77 W. Washington Street, Suite 1100, Chicago. FLAP was founded in direct response to the 1996 Congressional prohibition on federally funded legal services programs from filing class actions for or representing H-2A agricultural workers, H-2B forestry workers, and trafficking victims. The organization delivers free legal services, rights education, and advocacy to low-wage workers and their households in the cannery, farming, greenhouse, landscaping, meat, nursery, packinghouse, poultry, restaurant, and snow plowing industries, regardless of immigration status.

FLAP operates through six interlocking practice areas: Legal Services and Community Legal Education, Health, Economic Mobility and Empowerment, Community Outreach and Education, Community Navigator, and Advocacy. Service delivery combines in-house employment litigation (273 lawsuits filed to date, 90% as class or collective actions) with a referral network of more than 400 partner organizations and qualified attorneys spanning employment, immigration, personal injury, consumer, housing, family, and workers' compensation cases. Community Navigators, hired from the communities served, conduct Know Your Rights presentations and one-on-one navigation across housing, healthcare, immigration, education, and public benefits. FLAP maintains formal Memorandums of Understanding with seven consulates (Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru), reaching 13 U.S. states and approximately 3,000 low-wage people each week.

FLAP's revenue model is philanthropic rather than transactional: all services are free of charge. Funding sources include direct donor contributions and fundraising events, attorney fees (contingency recoveries from employment litigation), cy pres awards from class action settlements (facilitated by firms such as Paul Hastings, Fish, Billhorn, and Head), government contracts and family/community foundation grants (Illinois Equal Justice Foundation, Chicago Bar Foundation, Crown Family Philanthropies, Yield Giving/MacKenzie Scott, among others), referral fees from connected immigration attorneys, and endowment/investment income. FLAP explicitly does not receive Federal Legal Services Corporation funding. The organization's technology stack is light: a Next.js website, conventional case management and referral systems, and a long-term volunteer software engineer; no proprietary software product or API is offered.

Name

Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project

Legal name

Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project

Website

https://flapillinois.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project (FLAP) is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides free legal services, Know Your Rights education, and advocacy to low-wage immigrant workers in food supply chain, greenhouse, landscaping, nursery, and snow removal industries across 13 U.S. states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donor Contributions and Fundraising: FLAP receives direct donor contributions, conducts fundraising activities including appeal letters and in-person and online fundraiser events. The organization does not receive funding from the Federal Legal Services Corporation due to the population it serves.
2. Cy Pres Awards: FLAP receives cy pres awards from class action settlements where courts approve charitable donations from unclaimed class action funds. These awards fund free legal services and outreach for low-wage workers.
3. Attorney Fees: FLAP generates revenue through attorney fees, including contingency fees from employment litigation where owed wages are recovered for low-wage workers.
4. Government Contracts and Grants: FLAP receives funding from government contracts and grants from family and community foundations.
5. Referral Fees: FLAP earns referral fees by connecting low-wage workers to private immigration attorneys and legal aid organizations through its network of over 400 organizations and qualified attorneys.
6. Endowment and Stock Market: FLAP's funding arises from endowment and stock market investments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project (FLAP) provides free legal services, advocacy, and community education to low-wage workers and their households in the food supply chain, greenhouse, landscaping, nursery, and snow removal industries. Services are delivered bilingually (English/Spanish) through six interlocking practice areas: Legal Services, Health, Economic Mobility, Outreach and Education, Community Navigation, and Advocacy. The organization represents H-2A agricultural workers, H-2B forestry workers, and trafficking victims — populations excluded from federally funded legal services.

Product overview

FLAP is a non-profit legal advocacy organization, not a technology product company. It provides a unified set of free legal and social services for low-wage workers through six interlocking practice areas: Legal Services, Health, Economic Mobility, Outreach and Education, Community Navigator, and Advocacy. These services are delivered through staff, consultants, partner organizations, and consulates. The organization does not offer a software product or platform but rather direct service delivery including Know Your Rights presentations, legal representation, community navigation, and financial assistance. FLAP also operates a Cy Pres program to receive class action settlement funds for worker advocacy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Legal Services and Community Legal Education

Quantifiable outcome

• $13M+ recovered in back wages and damages for low-wage workers
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• Seven Consulates (Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 February 1999FLAP partners with seven Consulates General to bring social and legal services to low-wage workers across the United States. Through Memorandums of Understanding, these partnerships enable Know Your Rights presentations, dual citizenship assistance, and community outreach to approximately 3,000 low-wage people each week. The consulates serve as trusted institutional anchors within immigrant communities.
• Michael J. Fox FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLAP partners with the Michael J. Fox Foundation to advocate for a statewide ban on paraquat herbicide in Illinois. Multiple peer-reviewed studies link paraquat to higher Parkinson's risk, particularly with repeated occupational exposure in agricultural settings. This partnership represents a major public health advocacy initiative.
• The Fish Law FirmminorOthersThe Fish Law Firm has facilitated cy pres awards to FLAP, directing class action settlement residual funds to support FLAP's free legal services and outreach programs for low-wage workers.
• Billhorn Law FirmminorOthersBillhorn Law Firm has facilitated cy pres awards to FLAP, contributing to funding for free legal services and community outreach to low-wage workers.
• Head Law Firm, LLCminorOthersHead Law Firm, LLC has facilitated cy pres awards to FLAP to support its mission of improving working conditions for low-wage workers.
• Paul HastingsminorOthersPaul Hastings law firm has facilitated cy pres awards to FLAP to support legal services and outreach for low-wage workers.
• 573+ Partner Organizations (churches, farms, foundations, law firms, legal aid organizations, nonprofits, workers centers)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLAP partners with more than 573 organizations across businesses, churches, consulates, farms, foundations, private law firms, legal aid organizations, public libraries, other non-profits, and workers centers. Over 500 are based in Illinois across 19 counties. This network handles legal referrals across employment, immigration, personal injury, consumer, education, housing, family, and workers' compensation cases.
• Illinois UnidoscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLAP partners with Illinois Unidos, an organization serving Latino communities. FLAP staff participate in heal circles and retreats in partnership with Illinois Unidos to address mental health challenges affecting both workers and the FLAP team.
• The Resurrection Project Immigrant JusticeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLAP partners with The Resurrection Project to provide Rapid Response Training and Resources to strengthen community responses to ICE raids and connect impacted people with deportation defense infrastructure.
• ICIRR Family Support NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLAP partners with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) Family Support Network, which provides Know Your Rights PDFs and a hotline (1-855-HELP-MY-FAMILY / 1-855-435-7693) for immigrant families.
• Hispanic FederationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHispanic Federation is listed as a national partner supporting FLAP's mission to serve Latino low-wage workers.
• Justice for Migrant WomenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJustice for Migrant Women is a national partner of FLAP, focusing on advocacy for migrant women workers.
• Peggy Browning FundminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeggy Browning Fund is a national partner providing support for FLAP's labor rights work.
• Welcoming AmericaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWelcoming America is a national partner supporting FLAP's immigrant integration and worker rights initiatives.
• Heal Food AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHeal Food Alliance is a national partner aligned with FLAP's focus on food system workers and healthy food access.
• Illinois Access to JusticeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIllinois Access to Justice is a statewide partner working to expand access to justice for all Illinoisans.
• Community Health Partnership of IllinoiscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Health Partnership of Illinois is a statewide health partner that enhances FLAP's healthcare access programs for low-wage communities.
• Northern Illinois UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorthern Illinois University is an Illinois partner providing academic and research support for FLAP's programs.
• Northwestern Kellogg School of ManagementminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorthwestern Kellogg School of Management is a Cook County partner with board fellows (Fiona Mohamed and Anna Munoz) serving on FLAP's board, contributing governance expertise.
• Mexican Consulate in ChicagocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Mexican Consulate in Chicago is a key partner providing consular services and outreach to Mexican low-wage workers in Illinois.
• Latino Policy ForumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLatino Policy Forum is a statewide partner working on policy issues affecting Latino communities, aligned with FLAP's advocacy mission.

Scale indicators23 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Centro de los Derechos del Migrante (CDM): CDM is a farmworker-led organization that provides legal services, advocacy, and organizing support to migrant farmworkers across the U.S. Both organizations serve overlapping populations (H-2A workers, low-wage agricultural laborers) with legal aid, Know Your Rights education, and wage theft recovery, making them direct mission-aligned peers.
• Farmworker Justice: Farmworker Justice is a national advocacy organization that litigates, lobbies, and educates on behalf of farmworkers. It shares FLAP's focus on wage theft, H-2A worker protections, and immigrant farmworker rights, and serves a similar direct beneficiary population through federal policy advocacy and litigation support.
• Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR): ICIRR is a statewide coalition providing immigration legal services, advocacy, and Know Your Rights education to immigrant communities in Illinois. As a current FLAP partner, it shares overlapping service populations and complementary legal service offerings focused on the same immigrant worker base.
• Legal Aid Chicago: Legal Aid Chicago provides free civil legal services to low-income residents of Cook County, including employment, housing, and immigration matters. It overlaps directly with FLAP's Chicago-based legal services practice and serves many of the same low-wage worker clients in Illinois.
• Workers Law Office: Workers Law Office is a Chicago-based employment law firm serving low-wage workers with wage theft, discrimination, and workers' compensation cases. Legal Advisor Christopher Williams serves on FLAP's Legal Advisory Board, indicating direct referral and service coordination between the two organizations.
• First Defense Legal Aid: First Defense Legal Aid provides 24-hour legal aid, Know Your Rights education, and community support in Chicago, including bilingual services. Sasha Reyes previously worked there before joining FLAP, indicating direct service model overlap in serving immigrant and low-income communities in Illinois.

Broad incumbents

• United Farm Workers (UFW): UFW is the largest and most established farmworker advocacy organization in the U.S., focused on collective bargaining, immigration reform, and legislative advocacy. It operates at a national scale far broader than FLAP's Midwest concentration, making it a broad incumbent in the same advocacy space.
• National Immigration Law Center (NILC): NILC is a national legal advocacy organization defending and advancing the rights of low-income immigrants. It engages in impact litigation, policy analysis, and training — overlapping with FLAP's immigration and employment law work but operating at a national policy level rather than direct service delivery.
• Hispanic Federation: Hispanic Federation is a national nonprofit supporting Latino communities through grantmaking, advocacy, and direct service programs. As a current FLAP national partner, it provides funding and reach across multiple states, overlapping in mission to support Latino low-wage workers and immigrant families.

Regional players

• Migrant Legal Aid Program: Migrant Legal Aid programs (including Texas RioGrande Legal Aid and similar state-level programs) provide free legal services to migrant farmworkers in major agricultural states. They overlap with FLAP's farmworker legal services mission but operate in different geographies, primarily Texas and the Southwest.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/farmworkerlandscaper.advocacyproject
• Instagraminstagram.com/flapillinois
• Xx.com/flapillinois

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Farmworker & Landscaper Advocacy Project