ORGANIZE YOUR WORKPLACE
Contact the Organizing Department today and find out how you can start being a part of the decisions that affect your life.
If you are interested in organizing please submit your information. Your inquiry will remain confidential.
JOIN UFCW LOCAL 7
5 STEPS TO JOINING UFCW LOCAL 7
UNITE WITH YOUR CO-WORKERS
Workers meet with UFCW representatives to learn more about joining the UFCW. A Committee of workers and UFCW reps will gather signatures on union cards from people interested in becoming members.A PETITION IS FILED AND A VOTING DATE IS SET
When a strong majority of workers sign union cards, the UFCW presents the cards to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), an agency of the federal government, and asks them to conduct an election. The UFCW, your company and the NLRB set the date of the election.A UNION YES
When a majority of workers vote YES, we have the right to sit down with management to negotiate a contract and make improvements to our wages, benefits, and working conditions.FORM A NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE
A committee made up of co-workers and UFCW representatives will meet with the company to develop a union contract with guaranteed wages, benefits, and working conditions.VOTE ON YOUR CONTRACT
Together, we all decide whether we like the contract and vote to accept or reject it. No one pays union dues until after the majority approves the contract.
EVERY WORKER SHOULD HAVE A VOICE ON THE JOB. Join your coworkers and nearly 22,000 members of UFCW Local 7 to help build a movement that fights for economic, political, and social justice in our workplaces and in our communities.
FORMING A UNION IN YOUR WORKPLACE. It makes a difference to have a union. UFCW Local 7 members, alongside union staff, negotiate with employers for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. Together, we win contracts that guarantee and improve income and benefits. Through negotiations and standing together in a union, members earn the respect of their employers and gain a greater voice at work.
PROTECTIONS FOR WORKERS WHO WANT A UNION. It is illegal for management to question anyone about union activity or to threaten, harass, or discriminate against anyone because of union organizing. Workers attempting to form a union have legal rights and protections under a law called the National Labor Relations Act.
Here are a few examples of your protections:
Your employer cannot discriminate or threaten to fire, lay off, discipline, harass, transfer, or reassign employees because they support a union.
Your employer cannot favor employees who don't support a union over those who do in promotions, job assignments, wages, hours, enforcement of rules, or any other working condition.
Your employer cannot shut down the work site or take away any benefits or privileges employees already enjoy in order to discourage union activity.
If your employer violates the law, your union can help you file "Unfair Labor Practice" charges with the US Government through the National Labor Relations Board. They have the power to order an employer to stop interfering with employees' rights, to provide back pay, and to reverse any action taken against workers.
WHAT PROTECTED ACTIVITIES CAN WORKERS DO TO ORGANIZE?
Talk to organizers and hold meetings with coworkers to discuss joining a union.
Read, distribute, and discuss union literature, as long as you do this in non-work areas during non-work times, such as breaks or lunch hours.
Sign an Authorization Card asking your employer to recognize and bargain with the union.
Sign petitions or take actions with coworkers related to wages, hours, working conditions, and other job issues.
Wear union buttons, T-shirts, stickers, hats, or other items on the job (as long as you would generally be allowed to wear other kinds of buttons, T-Shirts, hats or other such items at work).
WHY JOIN UFCW LOCAL 7?
Once upon a time, one good job provided enough to raise a family with dignity and provide security for the future. Today, too many hard working Americans are barely making it from paycheck to paycheck with uncertain futures and tough prospects. Meanwhile, corporations and those who do their bidding crashed the economy but are raking in huge profits.
The question is: What are we going to do about it—for ourselves, our families, and our futures?
Deciding to form a union at our workplaces is the best way to improve our compensation and be guaranteed rights and more security on the job. Without a Union, we are “employees at will,” meaning we have no rights on the job, and can be disciplined or even fired without just cause. When the bosses do business they get contracts guaranteeing their rights. Why should working people be any different?
UFCW Local 7 has been successful in joining with working people to push hard to improve compensation, rights, and respect regardless of industry. In the Union, we bargain as equals with management in negotiations to expand and protect our rights:
Non-Union retail food workers are having their paychecks eaten up by increasing health care costs & hours cuts. Union workers doing the very same jobs have significantly reduced health care costs & contractual rights on the job to replace favoritism and the mood of the manager that day to determine hours, shifts, time off, discipline, discharge, and other issues of concern to those who do the work and create the profits.
Fast line speeds on assembly lines and food processing plants can cause permanent injuries. Their speed is strictly monitored and enforced by union contracts. Understaffing of medical personnel can create dangers for both healthcare workers and their patients. UFCW Local 7 members’ contract with Kaiser Permanente makes sure that proper staff-to-patient levels are maintained.
All workers deserve respect, fair compensation for the work we do, and the opportunity to live the American dream our ancestors fought hard to create. It’s up to us to decide if we’re ready to fight for it again.