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Employees of a Trader Joe’s store in western Massachusetts on Thursday voted in favor of forming the chain’s first union. The vote was 45 to 31 in favor of forming a union. There were 81 eligible voters. The store and employees have seven days to file objections to the results before they are certified. The workers are organizing under the name Trader Joe’s United, which would be an independent union, and not affiliated with a larger existing union.Unionization efforts began in May when organizers at the store sent an open letter to company CEO Dan Bane citing concerns about pay, benefits and safety.It’s not the first time Trader Joe’s workers have talked about forming a union. At the start of the pandemic, some workers who were concerned about safety discussed organizing. But those efforts ultimately fizzled under pressure from management, who in a letter to workers said that unions “drive discontent.”Trader Joe’s management has engaged in what organizer Maeg Yosef called “classic union-busting” tactics, including hiring a law firm specializing in fighting unionization to try and talk employees out of approving a union. Allegations of making coercive statements were filed against an individual at the store as recently as Monday, according to National Labor Relations Board records.California-based Trader Joe’s, which has about 550 stores nationwide, also just announced an enhanced benefits package that includes more paid time off and better pay for some employees, which she said was an effort to head off unionization.According to a company spokesperson this week, Trader Joe’s has generous pay and benefits by retail industry standards.“Trader Joe’s is a great place to work and our compensation, benefits, flexibility, and working conditions are among the best when compared to any retailer,” Nakia Rohde said in an email. “We welcome a fair vote by our crew members.”Yosef said in May that the company cut contributions to employee retirement plans — from the equivalent of 15% of an employee’s annual pay down to nothing — since she started there. At the time, he also estimated that approximately two-thirds of store employees supported unionization. Workers from at least two other Trader Joe’s locations have initiated unionization efforts. Employees at a Minneapolis location have a union vote scheduled for Aug. 11 and 12, while the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 on Tuesday filed a union election petition with the National Labor Relations Board on behalf of crew members at a Boulder, Colorado store.Video above: Flagship Seattle Starbucks store approves unionTrader Joe’s workers are part of a nationwide wave of employees at major companies who have or are attempting to unionize in an effort to secure a bigger say in their work conditions and compensation.Workers at multiple Starbucks coffee shop locations across the country, as well as employees at Amazon, Apple and REI, are among those who have joined unions in the past year.Union representation petitions increased 57% from Oct. 1 through March 31, according to the National Labor Relations Board.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Employees of a Trader Joe’s store in western Massachusetts on Thursday voted in favor of forming the chain’s first union.
The vote was 45 to 31 in favor of forming a union. There were 81 eligible voters.
The store and employees have seven days to file objections to the results before they are certified.
The workers are organizing under the name Trader Joe’s United, which would be an independent union, and not affiliated with a larger existing union.
Unionization efforts began in May when organizers at the store sent an open letter to company CEO Dan Bane citing concerns about pay, benefits and safety.
It’s not the first time Trader Joe’s workers have talked about forming a union. At the start of the pandemic, some workers who were concerned about safety discussed organizing. But those efforts ultimately fizzled under pressure from management, who in a letter to workers said that unions “drive discontent.”
Trader Joe’s management has engaged in what organizer Maeg Yosef called “classic union-busting” tactics, including hiring a law firm specializing in fighting unionization to try and talk employees out of approving a union. Allegations of making coercive statements were filed against an individual at the store as recently as Monday, according to National Labor Relations Board records.
California-based Trader Joe’s, which has about 550 stores nationwide, also just announced an enhanced benefits package that includes more paid time off and better pay for some employees, which she said was an effort to head off unionization.
According to a company spokesperson this week, Trader Joe’s has generous pay and benefits by retail industry standards.
“Trader Joe’s is a great place to work and our compensation, benefits, flexibility, and working conditions are among the best when compared to any retailer,” Nakia Rohde said in an email. “We welcome a fair vote by our crew members.”
Yosef said in May that the company cut contributions to employee retirement plans — from the equivalent of 15% of an employee’s annual pay down to nothing — since she started there. At the time, he also estimated that approximately two-thirds of store employees supported unionization.
Workers from at least two other Trader Joe’s locations have initiated unionization efforts. Employees at a Minneapolis location have a union vote scheduled for Aug. 11 and 12, while the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 on Tuesday filed a union election petition with the National Labor Relations Board on behalf of crew members at a Boulder, Colorado store.
Video above: Flagship Seattle Starbucks store approves union
Trader Joe’s workers are part of a nationwide wave of employees at major companies who have or are attempting to unionize in an effort to secure a bigger say in their work conditions and compensation.
Workers at multiple Starbucks coffee shop locations across the country, as well as employees at Amazon, Apple and REI, are among those who have joined unions in the past year.
Union representation petitions increased 57% from Oct. 1 through March 31, according to the National Labor Relations Board.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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