Syrg’s CEO Rahkeem Morris Named a Member of the Future of Work Commission by Massachusetts Senator Eric Lesser

Morris to Help Shape Policy Changes That Enable Technology to Create Good Jobs at Scale for Essential Workers and Create Life-Changing and Mutually Beneficial Outcomes for Businesses and Workers

BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Syrg, a leading online platform solving understaffing in hourly work, today announced that its CEO, Rahkeem Morris, was one of the 17 members appointed to the newly formed Future of Work Commission in Massachusetts. The Commission is co-chaired by Senator Eric P. Lesser of Longmeadow and Representative Josh S. Cutler of Pembroke.

The Commission was established to study how remote work and technology impact the state’s workforce and will look specifically at the role of automation, AI, global trade and new data forms on the workforce, businesses and the economy. It will make legislative recommendations for regulating things like the “gig economy” and how to prepare for the workplace of the future.

“We know the way we work is changing. As COVID-19 crashed into our economy, many gig workers, drivers, musicians, and independent contractors faced a future with no unemployment insurance or workplace protections,” said Eric Lesser, Senate chair of the Future of Work Commission & Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Economic Development. “The nature of work itself has changed in the 21st century, but we still operate off of a regulatory policy from the 19th century.”

The Commission will hold hearings to receive testimony from members of the labor and business communities on topics from workforce training and education to fair labor and workers rights, which will inform a final report with findings and policy recommendations. The first hearing was held this past Tuesday, and featured experts from the Aspen Institute, UMass Amherst Labor Center and the SEIU that spoke on the widespread trends impacting the future of work.

Speaking of his appointment to this Committee, Rahkeem Morris, CEO, Syrg said, “I’m thrilled to have been called upon to play a role in charting a course in which technology is used to create mutually beneficial outcomes for workers and businesses. The pandemic has shone a bright light on the fact that work is so fundamentally broken for millions, with a disproportionate effect on essential workers. I look forward to seeing the legislative changes that will come out of the findings of the Committee, and having honest conversations with business leaders at the hearings about what needs to change.”

For Rahkeem, making sure that hourly workers are taken care of is not just what his business focuses on, it is personal. Rahkeem dropped out of high school when he was 14 to help with family responsibilities and went on to hold 13 hourly jobs in the course of a decade to help support his family, all while earning his high school degree through night courses. Rahkeem went on to graduate from Cornell, work for Google in California and earn an MBA from Harvard, where he founded Syrg. Syrg uses a web-based application to connect employers and former workers in good standing for jobs and supplemental income. Even during the challenges associated with businesses reopening post-pandemic, Syrg has been able to double employers’ applicant flow. This year alone, Syrg has onboarded more than 250 individual companies, including helping staff every McDonald’s restaurant in New England.

Rahkeem is joined by leaders from the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, Merrimack Chamber of Commerce, Massachusetts AFL-CIO, Massachusetts Business Roundtable, Massachusetts Workforce Association, MassCOSH, the Fair Employment Project, Elms College, Blue Cross Blue Shield Empowering Abilities and Just-A-Start Corporation as fellow members of the Commission.

In addition to this Committee, Rahkeem is also the Vice-Chair at the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, BFIT.EDU, a private two-year vocational college that boasts a burgeoning short-term, stackable training certificate program, a model well-positioned for continual upskilling in the future of work.

About Syrg

Syrg is the pioneer of technology solutions that help businesses with hourly workers solve today’s greatest operational challenges: understaffing.. The company uses a web-based application to connect employers and their former workers in good standing, and allows employers to automate and manage their interactions with former employees. Syrg’s model—pooling and then nurturing former talent for future permanent and temporary “on-demand” positions—has helped businesses save more than $1,000 per permanent hire by bypassing recruitment, background checks, and training. It has also helped hourly employees pick up extra work.

Founded in 2017 and based in Boston, Syrg’s technology solutions are accessible from within existing workforce management systems and exceed even the strictest security standards. Stay connected with Syrg on LinkedIn and our website.

Contacts

Danielle Dougan for Syrg

dmillerick@gmail.com
978-430-9680