Posts Categorized: Resources

UFCW Local 75, in coordination with the International, recently held a training for organizers and Special Project Union Representatives (SPURs) in Cincinnati.

The training, which took place from March 6 to 7, was attended by nine UFCW Local 75 SPURs. The training focused on enhancing organizers’ engagement with members and potential members and refining their organizing skills and highlighted three key topics: how to better engage workers through reflective engagement; how to make effective home calls; and how to assess workers and handle challenges.

The “Reflective Engagement” segment of the training helped UFCW 75 SPURs to engage with workers thoughtfully, actively listen, and understand their concerns to build trust and strong connections. The “Making Effective Home Calls” segment focused on helping participants make home visits more impactful by growing personal connections with workers, addressing their concerns, and strengthening solidarity. The “Assessing Workers and Handling Resistance” segment helped participants to develop strategies to identify the skills and strengths of workers and gain tools to effectively handle any resistance, ensuring a constructive approach to challenges.

“I had no idea how much work and training organizers went through in order to have productive conversations,” said UFCW Local 75 member Lyn Adkins, who attended the training and works at a Meijer store. “The training was great.”

If your local is interested in holding a similar training for organizers and SPURs, contact D.J. Totty in the International’s Organizing Department at dtotty@ufcw.org.

The International’s Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Office recently held lifesaving skills training sessions for members of UFCW Local 5 in California. The training sessions included first aid techniques, how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and when and how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED).

Throughout eight training sessions held across four locations in Northern California, 69 UFCW Local 5 members received training on lifesaving practices, such as CPR and AED, so that they can swiftly tend to accidents and injuries as they happen and prevent them from getting worse. The training sessions included presentations on emergency situations ranging from sudden cardiac arrest to choking infants. The training sessions also emphasized both the rights and legal liabilities of good Samaritans who provide critical aid to those in need.

“This training provides lifesaving skills that members can use to help their co-workers, family members, and members of the public during medical emergencies,” said OSH Office Director Roy McAllister. “The response by our members who have requested and taken the training has been positive.”

These CPR/AED/First Aid training courses are just a small part of the health and safety training sessions that are available to all UFCW locals. If your local is interested in working with the OSH Office to hold a training session, have your Region Director contact Roy McAllister at rmcallister@ufcw.org, Caleb Willard, assistant director of the OSH Office, at cwillard@ufcw.org, or Nazareth Henry, occupational safety and health specialist, at NHenry@ufcw.org.