Negotiating a Better Life for Our Members

UFCW members continued to stand together and negotiate strong, new contracts this year, and some members had the benefit of securing their first union contracts.

In March, over 200 RWDSU/UFCW members who work at three Barnes & Noble stores in New York City ratified their first union contracts. These ratifications mark the first union contracts for Barnes & Noble workers in the nation and cover workers at the flagship Union Square store below the corporate headquarters and the West 82nd Street and Park Slope stores.

“The ratification of this contract represents three years of work at Barnes & Noble Union Square,” said Aaron Lascano (he/him), who is a senior bookseller at the Barnes & Noble Flagship store in Union Square. “When we started organizing, we were making minimum wage in unacceptable work conditions. The contract we voted on today was fought for and won by the workers of this store. Now, we’re looking forward to finally having guaranteed raises, excellent union health care coverage, protections from layoffs and store closure, and so much more. Finally, with a union contract, workers can feel secure in their careers as booksellers, baristas, and more.”

Members of UFCW Local 99 who work at WholesomeCo, a medical cannabis pharmacy in West Bountiful, Utah, also ratified their first union contract in March, becoming the first in Utah’s cannabis industry to do so.

“The cannabis industry in Utah wouldn’t be where it is today without the pharmacy workers who are on the frontlines caring for patients every day,” said Shaylee Robinson, a delivery fulfillment agent. “Forming a union wasn’t easy, but being able to have strong workplace protections has made everything worth it.”

In May, more than 26,000 JBS workers across the country made history by ratifying a first-ever national contract that includes significant wage increases, a newly created paid sick leave program, and with the support of JBS, the establishment of a pension retirement plan.

“I’ve been working at JBS for 10 years, and when I got the news about the pension, I was excited, “said Thelma Cruz, who is a union steward at the JBS Pork facility in Marshalltown, Iowa, and a member of UFCW Local 1846. “My husband also works here, and when we retire, we will both get pension checks every month. And the longer we’re with the company, the greater our checks will be. Everything right now is very expensive, and it’s hard to save money for retirement, so this gives us security. With pensions, raises, bonuses, earned sick pay, and improvements to paid funeral leave, this contract won’t just help my husband and me, but also a lot of families.”

Workers at Vertical Endeavors in Minnesota ratified their first contract in September, officially joining UFCW Locals 663 and 1189. The workers became the first climbing gym unit to join our union in 2023.

“We formed our union because we didn’t want to wait any longer for more pay or for more respect at work,” said Esthi Erickson, who works at Vertical Endeavors in Minneapolis. “We won the improvements we cared about by fighting for them.”

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