Monthly Archives: June 2022

Last week, UFCW International President Marc Perrone sent a letter about the issue of workplace violence and safety to Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. In the letter, which followed the tragic and senseless mass shooting at a Tops Friendly Markets store in Buffalo, N.Y., where UFCW Local One members are employed, and a second horrific mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, Perrone called on Congress to do two things: take action to address workplace violence, in part by passing the STOP Violence Act, and hold a Congressional hearing on the issue that includes workers’ voices.

The STOP Violence Act would make grocery stores eligible for the same federal funding provided to other workplaces that regularly experience incidents of violence in the workplace. Representative Joe Neguse (Colo.-02) introduced the bill roughly one year after UFCW Local 7 members were victims of workplace gun violence during another mass shooting at the Table Mesa King Soopers store in Boulder, Colo. 

“I am grateful that my union has been a leader in advocating for improving workplace safety, but we all know this is not enough. We need action from Congress,” said UFCW Local One member Rose Wysocki, who works as a produce manager at the Tops Friendly Markets store in Buffalo. “Essential workers should not have to worry or stress about workplace violence; we should be focused on serving our communities and customers. That is why I am asking that our Congressional leaders pass the STOP Violence Act, so my coworkers and I – and the hundreds of thousands of grocery workers across the country – can feel safe at work.”

In his statement about the letter, Perrone noted how important it is to hear straight from the workers who have experienced this violence. 

“It is long past time that our nation’s political leadership steps up to prevent more loss of life,” he said. “As the House of Representatives seeks to move a package of gun safety legislation forward in the coming days, it’s crucial that our leaders hear directly from those who have been impacted by this violence, including from our workers who are facing these risks on the job daily. We must hear their stories, their grief, and their fears.”

To learn more about UFCW’s call on Congress to address workplace violence and safety, click here.  To read the full letter, click here.

This year, the UFCW is once again supporting the Poor People’s Campaign and the “Poor People’s and Low-Wage Workers’ Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls,” which will take place on Saturday, June 18 at 9 a.m. in Washington, D.C.

For several years, our union has partnered with the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival as they work to shift the moral narrative, build power, and make real policies to fully address poverty and low wealth from the bottom up. Founded by Rev. Dr. William Barber II and Rev. Liz Theoharis, the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights and Social Justice at Union Theological Seminary, and hundreds of local and national grassroots groups, this campaign is uniting tens of thousands of people across the country to challenge systemic racism, poverty, the war economy, ecological devastation, and the nation’s distorted morality.

Local unions within driving distance of the metro-Washington area are encouraged to join in person and those outside of the area to join virtually. If you are interested in participating, please RSVP here and also with Ben Cassel in the UFCW’s Civil Rights and Community Action Department at bcassel@ufcw.org.  The RSVP form gives you the option of attending in person or virtually.

You can get more information about the Poor People’s Campaign march here.