Posts Categorized: RWDSU

Members of RWDSU/UFCW Local 338 who work at CVS in Brooklyn, New York, called on CVS to negotiate a fair and equitable contract at a community rally on March 15.

The Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW members there have been in negotiations for their first contract since March 2017, but the company has repeatedly rejected reasonable proposals. The CVS in Brooklyn is the first unionized CVS store on the East Coast, and workers there voted to join RWDSU/UFCW Local 338 in August of 2015. The company initially attempted to overturn the results from the union election, but the National Labor Relations Board overruled the appeal and recognized RWDSU/UFCW Local 338 as the workers’ bargaining representative last year.

Since then, RWDSU/UFCW Local 338, along with a committee of workers at CVS, have attempted to negotiate a contract with the company. Currently, there are a few thousand CVS employees on the West Coast, including California, who are also members of the UFCW. The contracts in California provide a number of benefits and workplace protections for both full- and part-time workers, including living wages, health benefits, a retirement plan, and paid time off. CVS rejected RWDSU/UFCW Local 338’s initial proposal for a union contract that is similar to what union members on the West Coast receive. Instead, the company is insisting on keeping the Brooklyn workers at lower pay scales and benefit levels.

“For almost 14 years, I’ve worked hard for CVS, but never felt truly valued by the company, which is why my coworkers and I voted to join Local 338,” said Adrian Caddle, a RWDSU/UFCW Local 338 member working at CVS in Flatbush, Brooklyn. “When I learned that there were union members working at CVS on the West Coast, I was glad to hear about the guaranteed wage increases in their contracts that weren’t based on store location or individualized reviews. But there hasn’t been any relief because CVS doesn’t take us or our requests seriously. I am going to be in this fight with my coworkers until we are treated equally as other CVS workers.”

“We are extremely disappointed and frustrated that CVS has shown a total disregard for the men and women working at the CVS in Flatbush from the time that these workers voted to unionize,” said John R. Durso, president of RWDSU/UFCW Local 338. “There has been a precedent set by UFCW locals on the West Coast for a strong union contract that provides workers at those CVS stores with living wages, paid time off and a number of other benefits that the company is denying the workers in Flatbush. This has left us to ask why California and Oregon, but not New York? These hard-working men and women also live in a high cost area and are no less deserving of the opportunity to provide for their families.”

“CVS workers in Brooklyn need dignity and respect on the job – and we won’t back down till they get it,” said David Mertz, New York City director of the RWDSU. “Just because workers live in different states doesn’t mean they should be treated any differently. CVS’s utter refusal to even hear the needs of our members is disgraceful and they should be ashamed.”

On Sept. 14, about 100 members of RWDSU/UFCW Local 1102 who work in the women’s shoe department at Saks Fifth Avenue’s iconic flagship store in New York City ratified a new contract that will reverberate nationwide. The hard-fought contract repelled the company’s outrageous demands to eliminate employee commissions when a customer paid with an “earned gift card” or “Saks First” loyalty points – a change which would have slashed employee pay by up to 10 percent. This hard-fought victory is not only a win for members of RWDSU/UFCW Local 1102, but is also a triumph for hard-working Saks employees in stores across the country, as the company has indicated that because of RWDSU/UFCW Local 1102’s arguments against these arbitrary programs, it will halt a previously planned nationwide implementation.

Under the new agreement, the company will retain the present commission structure by preserving the union employees’ 10 percent commission on sales of women’s shoes. Further, the union negotiated the right to have employees’ sales goals adjusted to account for their use of vacation and other paid time off. Finally, RWDSU/UFCW Local 1102 negotiated a contract ratification bonus for Saks’ unionized workforce.  

“I am taken aback by the company’s response to our concerns about changes to the commission system and their interest in not just retaining the system in New York but for my friends and colleagues at other stores,” said Gil McGarvey, a Saks sales representative and Local 1102 shop steward and executive board member. “In all my years at Saks, never have I felt more heard by the company – and the union is the reason we were heard.”   

“I am exceptionally proud of, and humbled by, the hard work and selfless dedication of our nine member negotiations team,” said Alvin Ramnarain, president of RWDSU/UFCW Local 1102. “This contract is a huge win for both our members, and also for workers across the country who would have received drastic pay cuts. Saks, after speaking with its corporate partners, agreed to back off its demands, and actually informed us that because of the arguments presented at the bargaining table, they would quash this program nationwide. We are grateful that Saks understood that when they invest in their people and let them sell, their business will thrive. This is clearly a case where the union difference will have a positive effect on Saks’ profits, and that’s a win for our members and the company. What is clear today is that when workers stand together, we can win.”