The Labor Pledge

When AI does the work, workers still get paid in.

Our prices are low because AI does work that people used to be paid to do. When that work leaves a payroll, so do the Social Security contributions that come with it. The Labor Pledge puts that money back: on every engagement, easier.company voluntarily contributes toward worker retirement what payroll tax would have paid on the human labor our AI replaced.

Human hours × $23.08 × 12.4% = contribution

Calculated for every engagement and shown on every quote.

How each part is set

1. Human hours

The platform estimates how long a professional preparer or bookkeeper would have spent on the engagement, task by task. Each task has a set time per item, such as 3 minutes to classify each ledger account or 45 minutes to write each program description, so the estimate grows with the actual size of the job. Before your books are uploaded, the quote uses a typical organization; once your draft is prepared, the hours are recalculated from your real numbers. The time standards are working estimates that we will refine with timings from our own reviewers.

2. Living wage: $23.08 an hour

We value those hours at the national average living wage for one working adult (unweighted average of the 50 states and D.C., MIT Living Wage Calculator, 2025). The MIT Living Wage Calculator estimates what a full-time worker must earn to cover basic costs where they live. MIT does not publish a single national figure, so we average its state figures, counting each state equally.

3. Contribution rate: 12.4%

12.4% is the combined Social Security (OASDI) payroll tax rate: 6.2% paid by employers and 6.2% paid by employees. It is what Social Security would have collected if a person had been paid for the work.

Our commitments

The contribution is paid out of our fee. It is never added to your price.
Every quote shows the estimated hours, the task breakdown, and the dollar amount.
Contributions go to a worker retirement fund.
The method on this page is the same code that calculates your quote.

Worked examples

Form 990

A typical full return: 60 accounts, 3 programs, 8 officers and directors, Schedules A, B, D, O.

Task a person would do	Hours
Client intake and engagement setup	1
Classify 60 ledger accounts to IRS lines (3 min each)	3
Tie out balances, prior-year figures, and form totals	1.5
Allocate 18 expense lines by function (6 min each)	2.3
Write 3 program accomplishment descriptions (45 min each)	2.25
List 8 officers and directors with compensation (6 min each)	0.8
Governance answers and Schedule O narratives	1.5
Prepare Schedules A, B, D (90 min each)	4.5
Assemble the return and review package	1
Total hours	17.85

17.85 hours × $23.08 = $411.98 of labor × 12.4% = $51.09 contributed

Form 990-EZ

A smaller organization: 35 accounts, 2 programs, 5 officers and directors, Schedules A and B.

Task a person would do	Hours
Client intake and engagement setup	1
Classify 35 ledger accounts to IRS lines (3 min each)	1.75
Tie out balances, prior-year figures, and form totals	0.75
Write 2 program accomplishment descriptions (45 min each)	1.5
List 5 officers and directors with compensation (6 min each)	0.5
Governance answers	0.5
Prepare Schedules A, B (90 min each)	3
Assemble the return and review package	0.5
Total hours	9.5

9.5 hours × $23.08 = $219.26 of labor × 12.4% = $27.19 contributed

Form 990-N (e-Postcard)

Organizations with gross receipts normally of $50,000 or less.

Task a person would do	Hours
Confirm 990-N eligibility and file the e-Postcard	0.75
Total hours	0.75

0.75 hours × $23.08 = $17.31 of labor × 12.4% = $2.15 contributed

Monthly close

One month of nonprofit bookkeeping with 60 accounts.

Task a person would do	Hours
Collect and import the month's ledger	0.5
Review and classify 60 accounts (2 min each)	2
Reconciliation checks and tie-out	1.5
Prepare statements of activities and financial position	1
Close notes for the board	0.5
Total hours	5.5

5.5 hours × $23.08 = $126.94 of labor × 12.4% = $15.74 contributed