On Feb. 24, about 17 workers at the Reconsidered Goods thrift store in Greensboro, N.C., voted unanimously to unionize with the RWDSU/UFCW.
The workers at Reconsidered Goods, who are employed in positions ranging from sales associates to fabric specialists, decided to join the RWDSU/UFCW because they felt that their workplace concerns were not being heard without a seat at the table. For a while, workers have felt severely overworked and deeply undervalued by the non-profit, whose mission and vision they work to move forward every day. They faced an uphill battle to get to their union vote when the company tried to exclude two workers from the unit. Last month, workers went on strike over the issue and won in less than 24 hours, with the company agreeing to let all eligible workers vote in the union election.
In their first union contract, workers will seek to address a litany of problems which have often gone unaddressed; problems which undermine everything good that they value about the store, its culture, and their positions at the store – the same positions the company challenged in the bargaining unit. Workers at the thrift store face safety issues both physically in the store and from the public they interact with every day, and have concerns about working in extreme temperatures, and around wages and scheduling changes, along with other issues they feel management has been slow or failed to respond to. With a union, workers will now have a voice and a seat at the table to begin addressing these concerns. Once a union contract is ratified and in place, changes will be implemented.
“There has been no doubt in my mind that we would win this election,” said Yvonne Rabel (she/her), who is a fabric specialist at Reconsidered Goods. “We’ve been working hard for over a year to build a sense of community and camaraderie with each other. This month, we’ve demonstrated our solidarity and our willingness to show up for each other when faced with challenges. Our community has been nothing but supportive of our goals to ensure a safer work environment and we’re going to continue to work toward these goals during negotiations. I can’t say whether I expect our directors to be collaborative or not, but I’m hopeful we can work on a solution that includes the workers having a say in the decisions that affect them.”
“Workers in the retail sector know the only way to secure real lasting change at work is through a union contract,” said RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum (he/him). “The strength of workers in Greensboro, North Carolina, organizing with our union in just the first two months of this year has been incredible. I’m proud to welcome workers at Reconsidered Goods into the RWDSU and have them join members at REI Greensboro in solidarity as they both work to secure their first union contracts side by side in the same city.”