The Solidarity Center is an independent, global human rights and democracy organization within the AFL–CIO family of organizations and constituency groups. It is one of the core grantees of the National Endowment for Democracy.^[1]

Its stated mission is to help build a global labor movement by helping workers realize their power to achieve fairness and avoid exploitation in the economy, and to build healthy, stable democracies around the world through effective, independent and democratic unions.

The AFL-CIO established the Solidarity Center in 1997. The Solidarity Center was created through the consolidation of four labor institutes: the American Institute for Free Labor Development, the Asian-American Free Labor Institute, the African-American Labor Institute, and the Free Trade Union Institute.^[2][3] Harry Kamberis, a former member of the Asian-American Free Labor Institute, served as the organization's first director.^[4]

By 1998, the Solidarity Center had opened field offices in multiple countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Operating in approximately 20 to 28 countries by the turn of the century, it focused on promoting core labor rights and assisting unions.^[4][3] These activities were primarily funded by U.S. government grants, including those administered through the National Endowment for Democracy.^[4]

More than 96 percent of its funding comes from the United States federal government, mostly through U.S. Aid for International Development (USAID) and the National Endowment for Democracy.^[5] The NED distributes grants to four institutes, two associated with economic interests and two with political interests. The Solidary Center is associated with labor.

The Solidarity Center receives funding from private foundations as well.^[6]

The Solidarity Center's main offices are in Washington, D.C. The organization has field offices in roughly 28 countries and programs in approximately 60 countries.^[7]

• Goldstone, Jack A, ed. (2008). Improving democracy assistance: Building knowledge through evaluations and research. National Academies Press. pp. xvi+336. ISBN 978-0-309-11736-4.