UFCW International President Advocates Raising Minimum Wage

By admin On Mar 13, 2013 All News | Latest updates | News Comments Off Tags: , , , , ,

Joe Hansen UFCW International President Advocates Raising Minimum WageUnited Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) President Joe Hansen wants to increase minimum wages to $10.10 and index it to inflation- a bad move for workers.

As times have gotten harder across the country, people are having to find ways to do more with less. As people in all industries work longer and harder shifts to make ends meet, it’s often tempting to think how great it would be if only the federal government were to step in and help out. Never worry- the United Food and Commercial Workers International President is supporting a plan to help:

Joe Hansen, International President of the UFCW, today released the following statement in support of a bill… that would raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour and index it to inflation. “CEO pay has risen 725 percent over the last 30 years yet workers making the minimum wage are still living in poverty. This is a national disgrace. Raising the minimum wage and adjusting it to inflation is an important step in helping millions of American workers make ends meet.”

Now all of this sounds like a good idea, right? More money in your pocket, better economy, right? Except that historically, this is not the case. In fact, at this point, raising the minimum wage might be the worst thing UFCW could propose for our economy. Americans for Limited Government Communications Director writes about what happened after the first minimum wage increase in 2007:

The first bump in pay did not cause much damage since it occurred rapidly and the economy was operating at pretty close to full employment. But the second installment of the increase, which went into effect in the summer of 2008, was devastating.

The economy was beginning to slow in the spring of 2008, and thousands of employers independently decided that they could not afford to hire as many summer workers at higher costs. The result: the unemployment rate jumped from 4.9 percent to 5.4 percent in May 2008.

Bring that to today, and we’re currently looking at an unemployment rate of 7.7%. Our economy is still not in the best condition, and is barely making any progress in decreasing unemployment. Now is the worst time for the UFCW to promote a policy which could cause unemployment to skyrocket.

Tying the minimum wage to inflation also leaves the question of what happens when inflation drops while unemployment is still high. Inflation costs don’t always include the price of basic necessities. What the UFCW is supporting is short-sighted, and could leave workers with higher bills and less pay.

Ultimately, an increase of the minimum wage hurts employees far more than it could help, as unemployment will necessarily skyrocket. Sure, if you can get a job, you’ll be paid well- in a situation that is quite reminiscent of a quote from the Great Depression; “the Depression was not so bad if you had a job.” In a world with an unsustainable minimum wage, that quote may become real again. The UFCW should know better than to sacrifice worker job security for temporary pay increase.

Joe Hansen UFCW International President Advocates Raising Minimum Wage

United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) President Joe Hansen wants to increase minimum wages to $10.10 and index it to inflation- a bad move for workers. As times have gotten harder across the country, people are having to find ways to do more with less. As people in all industries work longer and harder shifts…

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NLRB Drops UFCW Walmart Black Friday Illegal Picketing Case

By admin On Feb 6, 2013 All News | Latest updates 2 Comments Tags: , , , , ,

The National Labor Relations Board has held that the case against the UFCW’s Black Friday allegedly illegal picketing of Walmart will be held in abeyance, meaning that no legal action against the union will take place as long as the UFCW does not make any further organized efforts against Walmart. To be clear, UFCW’s actions are an allegedly illegal, unfair labor practice given that the UFCW has not given notice that they are organizing a Walmart-specific union. However, based on commitments the UFCW has given Walmart and the NLRB, the NLRB will dismiss the case in six months as long as there are no further organized actions. The UFCW’s promises, as follows, are that they:

  • will stop all unlawful recognitional picketing, the basis of the Unfair Labor Practice charge against the union,
  • will stop encouraging unlawful disruptions by nearly 30 affiliated groups and,
  • will stop all picketing and confrontational conduct at our stores and other company facilities for at least 60 days.

As we’ve discussed before, the UFCW’s allegedly illegal actions culminated in a large-scale walkout planned for the day after Thanksgiving, also known as Black Friday. This attempt to scare Walmart into accepting their demands not only failed to stall the retail giant into submission, it was also roundly hailed as a disaster. As we stated before the walkout:

For all of the previous attempts the UFCW has made to unionize America’s largest employer, Walmart has yet to unionize any of their stores, or even change their attitude towards unionization. But rather than change course, the UFCW has instead decided to double down on attacking the employer.This is a particularly bad strategy- not only because it only seems to fuel the animosity Walmart has for the UFCW, but because it also hurts the very employees the UFCW claims they are trying to help.

Now the UFCW is claiming that since their defeat, they will not be pursuing further action against Walmart. To that, we say their actions prove otherwise- the UFCW has not let a little illegal action stop them before, and thave have continued to press their luck when it’s clear their efforts will not pay off. It may only be a matter of time before this case is in front of the NLRB again.

The National Labor Relations Board has held that the case against the UFCW’s Black Friday allegedly illegal picketing of Walmart will be held in abeyance, meaning that no legal action against the union will take place as long as the UFCW does not make any further organized efforts against Walmart. To be clear, UFCW’s actions…

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Walmart Fights UFCW to Keep Black Friday from Going Dark

By admin On Nov 23, 2012 All News | Dirty tactics | Union Mismanagement 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , ,

For months, the UFCW and their subsidiary group, OUR Walmart, have been making noises that they’ll be striking at Walmarts across the country during arguably the biggest retail day of the whole year- Black Friday.

Now Walmart is finally fighting fire with fire, and taking legal action against the UFCW:

Wal-Mart filed an unfair labor practice charge against the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, or UFCW, asking the National Labor Relations Board to halt what the retailer says are unlawful attempts to disrupt its business.

The move comes just a week before what is expected to be the largest organized action against the world’s largest retailer, as a small group of Walmart workers prepare to strike on Black Friday, typically the busiest shopping day of the year.

The response from the NLRB is expected to come sooner rather than later, as Black Friday is imminently approaching, and the impact on Walmart sales could be drastic.

UFCW’s approach here seems to fit the “we hate you, so join us” attitude that we’ve written on extensively here. In this approach, the UFCW is threatening to cut Walmart where it hurts- their bottom line. Rather than negotiating for better wages or making their case in the court of public opinion, they

However, as we’ve seen, this approach does not work well in practice. For all of the previous attempts the UFCW has made to unionize America’s largest employer, Walmart has yet to unionize any of their stores, or even change their attitude towards unionization. But rather than change course, the UFCW has instead decided to double down on attacking the employer.

This is a particularly bad strategy- not only because it only seems to fuel the animosity Walmart has for the UFCW, but because it also hurts the very employees the UFCW claims they are trying to help. Right now, the U.S. economy is not in a particularly good spot, and people are clamoring for whatever jobs they can get.

When a company has a significant loss of revenue, they’re less likely to be able to use that revenue to promote their employees, increase their employee’s benefits, or be able to retain employees especially in a down economy. But by undermining the company’s chief source of revenue, we see a key contradiction between the UFCW’s stated goals of helping employees and their real goals of unionizing more companies at any cost.

One of the origins of the phrase “Black Friday” comes from the accounting practice of using red ink for deficit revenue  and black ink for positive revenue- the Friday after Thanksgiving would the first day some companies would be “into the black,” or finally making a profit for the year. By undermining Walmart, the UFCW is showing their real colors- they don’t mind if the company doesn’t make a profit, as long as they keep getting their dues money from workers to finance their lavish lifestyles.

For months, the UFCW and their subsidiary group, OUR Walmart, have been making noises that they’ll be striking at Walmarts across the country during arguably the biggest retail day of the whole year- Black Friday. Now Walmart is finally fighting fire with fire, and taking legal action against the UFCW: Wal-Mart filed an unfair labor practice…

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Former UFCW Local 400 Employee Sues Union for Contract Breach

By admin On Nov 5, 2012 All News | Dirty tactics | Scandals | Union Mismanagement Comments Off Tags: , , ,

One of the most important jobs of a union is to ostensibly protect workers from their employers. The union ensures that the employer does not take advantage of its employees and in return, asks for support from the employees. However, what happens when it’s the union that is taking advantage of the employees? Who oversees the unions when they take advantage of their employees?

Jeffrey Seaman is finding out the hard way that sometimes unions like UFCW can take advantage of their own- after leaving the UFCW, they reneged on their severance agreement:

Seaman claims he did not receive any salary checks after Nov. 5, 2010.
The defendant failed to respond to Seaman when he requested the status of his salary checks or the reason for their absence, according to the suit.
Seaman claims the defendant’s failure to pay his salary violates the severance agreement and he has yet to receive the $25,000 automobile allowance minus appropriate and required withholdings.
The defendant’s actions violate West Virginia code and have caused Seaman damages, according to the suit.

This kind of poor treatment from the union is quite hypocritical because, as they say on their website, “Members of Local 400 are an important part of a democratic organization, one with a very important goal: to help workers obtain and hold onto better paychecks, job security, decent fringe benefits and justice on the job.”

Unfortunately, that dedication to better paychecks and justice does not seem to extend to their own employees after they leave the job.

Fortunately, Seaman has recourse outside of the UFCW to make sure his former employer lives up to their end of the deal- the courts. Because of the UFCW Local 400’s failure to live up to their contract, Seaman has to fight back using legal resources.

At very least, the UFCW needs to live up to their own promises and fulfill Seaman’s severance agreement. More importantly, it needs to ensure that the violations of trust are addressed and dealt with. The UFCW cannot ever hope to gain the trust of their members if they cannot fulfill their promises to their own employees.

One of the most important jobs of a union is to ostensibly protect workers from their employers. The union ensures that the employer does not take advantage of its employees and in return, asks for support from the employees. However, what happens when it’s the union that is taking advantage of the employees? Who oversees…

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UFCW Boycotts Grocer for Following Law on E-Verify

By admin On Oct 11, 2012 All News | Dirty tactics | Shady Lobbying Comments Off Tags: , , , ,

The Justice for Mercados Campaign, a campaign led by California’s United Food and Commercial Workers, have called for a boycott of Mi Pueblo, a grocery store based in San Jose. The store’s crime: signing up for a federal program- E-Verify – to comply with immigration law:

The company said on Friday that it joined E-Verify after federal immigration officials launched an audit of its existing workers’ immigration status in August, the San Jose Mercury News reported.

The chain’s founder, Juvenal Chavez, himself a former undocumented immigrant, has briefed employees over the past week, the Los Angeles Times reported over the weekend.

While E-Verify is a voluntary program, it does offer Mi Pueblo the ability to take matters into their own hands, rather than have federal investigators audit their employees and create potential problems. Of course, by taking the action themselves rather than having the auditors take care of it (presumably at higher expense and with more stress to the situation), they brought the attention and ire of the UFCW. The union’s solution: unionize their workforce, of course! Read More

The Justice for Mercados Campaign, a campaign led by California’s United Food and Commercial Workers, have called for a boycott of Mi Pueblo, a grocery store based in San Jose. The store’s crime: signing up for a federal program- E-Verify – to comply with immigration law: The company said on Friday that it joined E-Verify…

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Happy Birthday UFCW! We’re Kicking You Out.

By admin On Aug 9, 2012 All News | Dirty tactics | Latest updates | Union Mismanagement Comments Off Tags: , , , , ,
On August 8th, 1979, the United Food and Commercial Workers was formed. A merger between the Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workers of North America and the Retail Clerks International Union formed the basis of their support. The newly-formed union expanded to where it now covers over a million workers of all different professions.

Which is why it’s so interesting that workers are now rejecting them in increasing numbers, and their causes are alienating more people by the day.

Take the 2-day special election, overseen by the NLRB, where Factor Sales employees rejected the UFCW’s attempt to unionize them:

Even as a UFCW organizer vowed to challenge the election, anti-union employees of Factor Sales and the company’s president, Victor Salcido, saw the vote as putting to rest a nearly yearlong campaign that had divided the chain’s workers.“All I can tell is that the vote was respected, and that’s it,” said Salcido after the vote tally was completed. “Thanks to God, justice was done.”
In a gathering attended by Salcido, anti-UFCW workers celebrated the vote, chanting, “Si se pudo” (“Yes we did”).
The irony of seeing employees using the Obama campaign’s slogan against the union (who, by the way, spent over 13.1 million electing Obama and other state/federal candidates, and reported over $900,000 spent with the AFL-CIO on political advertising) shouldn’t be lost on the UFCW.

But it seems they are, however, allergic to learning a lesson- their spokesman said the UFCW is contesting the election with the NLRB and will attempt to attack the employer through unfair labor practices. Perhaps that’s why they’re picketing a small city mom-and-pop businesses that isn’t even profitable yet? Yes, you read that right- Read More

On August 8th, 1979, the United Food and Commercial Workers was formed. A merger between the Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workers of North America and the Retail Clerks International Union formed the basis of their support. The newly-formed union expanded to where it now covers over a million workers of all different professions. Which…

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UFCW Strike Stops Red Cross Blood Drive

By admin On Jun 7, 2012 All News | Dirty tactics | Union Mismanagement 1 Comment Tags: , , ,
For about four years, there hasn’t been a contract between the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 75 and the Red Cross’ Toledo office. Despite multiple trips to the bargaining table, no agreement has been reached.
Now, the UFCW Local 75 is taking a radically extreme step, and stopping an annual blood drive- one with significant local support:

The 25th Annual Interfaith Blood Drive that had been scheduled for June 23 and 24 has been postponed indefinitely because of the Red Cross workers’ strike.

Devorah Shulamit, founder and chairman of the blood drive that is supported by multiple local religious groups and individuals, said the event “has been caught in the middle of a very sad and unfortunate position due to the strike.”

The ongoing strike has centered on health care, with the Red Cross offering plans similar to other charity groups, and the UFCW Local 75 demanding more concessions.

In a statement the Red Cross issued, they clarified their position:

The biggest obstacle in these difficult negotiations is health care. The Red Cross has made proposals consistent with those made elsewhere, and we are disappointed that the union continues to demand more.

The Red Cross has put forward contract proposals consistent with the health, dental, vision and life insurance benefits package provided locally to our non-union staff, including management. We offered multiple plan options at various pricing levels designed to meet the needs of our employees and their families.

The Red Cross has settled 20 contracts with other local labor unions across the country since July 2011. Two of these agreements came after UFCW Local 75 began its strike. This shows we are committed to reaching successful resolutions to negotiations, and we believe a contract should be achieved here as well.

While the health care concerns of UFCW Local 75 may be significant, the Red Cross does significant life saving work. Blood drives are an important way to make sure that blood banks are prepared in the case of emergency. More importantly, donated blood helps save lives.

For the UFCW to continue to fight for special benefits even after other local unions have agreed to similar terms, and to interrupt life-saving services, is beyond selfish- it’s downright wrong.

first-aid-red-cross-ufcw

For about four years, there hasn’t been a contract between the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 75 and the Red Cross’ Toledo office. Despite multiple trips to the bargaining table, no agreement has been reached. Now, the UFCW Local 75 is taking a radically extreme step, and stopping an annual blood drive- one…

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