Posts Categorized: RWDSU

RWDSU/UFCW members at six Guitar Center locations in New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, and Nevada recently ratified a new contract.

The three-year contract includes an increased minimum wage rate for every position, which will continue to go up every year of the agreement. Tenured employees received an additional seniority wage adjustment. The contract also maintains the union health plan with the addition of a short-term disability benefit.

Other contract highlights include an updated attendance policy that changes the grace period for lateness from five minutes to 15 minutes and the ability to call additional labor-management meetings during the year. The contract also gives current workers a leg up on moving positions within Guitar Center. Going forward, when new part- and full-time positions become available in the bargaining unit, the manager will be required to share the listing with current workers five days ahead of advertising the job to the public.

Importantly for sales associates and repair technicians, the contract maintains the current commission structure – unlike the non-union Guitar Center stores, where commission payouts have been slashed across the company.

The unionized Guitar Center stores covered in the contract are located in Boston and Danvers, Mass.; Chicago; Las Vegas; New York City; and Queens, N.Y.

On March 14, about 50 workers at the Barnes & Noble 82nd Street store on the Upper West Side of Manhattan voted to join the RWDSU/UFCW by an overwhelming margin. Workers at the Barnes & Noble Upper West Side store now join two other unionized stores in New York City, including the flagship Union Square store and the Park Slope, Brooklyn store.

The workers in the bargaining unit include booksellers, baristas, cashiers, maintenance clerks and all non-supervisory employees at the store. The vote to unionize workers at the Barnes & Noble Upper West Side store was conducted by an in-person secret ballot on-site at the store and overseen by the National Labor Relations Board.

These workers joined our union family because of concerns over job security, a lack of structure when it comes to job duties and tasks at work, and favoritism by management, all of which they’re seeking to address in their first union contract.

“Winning our union election means my and my co-worker’s needs can finally be heard! We’re asking for fair pay, clear opportunities to progress in long-term careers with Barnes & Noble, and overall job security,” said Gina Fowler (she/they), who is a senior barista at the Upper West Side Barnes & Noble store. “I look forward to having our voices heard at the bargaining table.”

“We’re all thrilled and excited at the election result,” said Esther Rosenfield (she/her), who is also a senior barista at the Upper West Side Barnes & Noble store. “The feeling of solidarity among employees at every position in the store is really incredible. We’re looking forward to beginning negotiations for fair pay and better working conditions.”

“With each new union election, workers continue to send a clear message to Barnes & Noble that they want a seat at the table – and they are winning that seat by historic margins,” said RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum. “Bookstore workers across the industry, from independent sellers to corporate behemoths like Barnes & Noble, face safety concerns, lack of training, and favoritism by management. Only with a union will these issues and more be heard. Barnes & Noble workers are changing how their history will be told, and inspiring other workers to do the same!”