United Food and Commercial Workers

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**United Food and Commercial Workers**

Members	1.4 million (2005)
Country	United States & Canada
Affiliation	Change to Win Federation, CLC
Key people	Joseph T. Hansen, International President
Office location	Washington, D.C.
Website	www.ufcw.org

The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union is a labor union representing approximately 1.4 million workers in the United States and Canada in many industries, including agriculture, health care, meatpacking, poultry and food processing, manufacturing, textile and chemical trades, and retail food. Until July 2005, UFCW was affiliated with the AFL-CIO, where it was the second largest union by membership. Along with two other members of the Change to Win Coalition, the UFCW formally disaffiliated with the AFL-CIO on July 29, 2005.

1 History
2 Activity in Retail Markets
3 Organization in Agriculture
- 3.1 Canadian Organization
4 Work Stoppages and Conflict with Corporations
5 Reform Efforts in the UFCW
6 Criticism
7 References
8 External resources

[edit] History

The UFCW was created through the merger of the Amalgamated Meat Cutters union and Retail Clerks International Union in 1979. The UFCW expanded by merging with several smaller unions between 1980 and 1998.

[edit] Activity in Retail Markets

The UFCW currently operates in a number of major grocery chains throughout the United States, including Albertsons, Kroger, Meijer, Schnucks, Safeway, Giant Food LLC, The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company, P&C Foods, Quality Markets, BiLo (both Ahold and Penn Traffic's), Tops Markets, A&P, and Shop Rite. The Union also operates in Canada in major food retail chains such as Loblaw Companies Limited.

[edit] Organization in Agriculture

[edit] Canadian Organization

The UFCW has attempted to organize agricultural workers in Ontario, Canada since 1995, when the provincial government passed legislation prohibiting those workers from joining unions. In 2001 the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in favour of UFCW Canada in the case of Dunmore v. Ontario.^[1] In the ruling, the Court held that the Ontario government violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by denying agricultural workers unionization rights under Ontario labor law as it had infringed on those workers' freedom of association.

Since the decision, the provincial government has supported legislation that gives agricultural workers the right to join or form an association but no rights to collective bargaining. The UFCW continues to challenge this legislation while making efforts to reach Ontario farm workers. On June 30, 2006, the Ontario government announced that it would extend coverage to farm workers under that province's occupational safety and health legislation, another longstanding demand of the UFCW.^{[citation needed]}

In 2004, UFCW Canada and the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) signed a formal organizing protocol recognizing the UFCW as the union with primary jurisdiction for organizing agricultural workers in Canada and agreeing to cooperate on joint organizing and advocacy campaigns.^[2]

[edit] Work Stoppages and Conflict with Corporations

[edit] 2003 California grocery strike

Main article: Southern California Supermarket strike of 2003-2004

On October 11, 2003, the UFCW declared a strike on Vons (owned by Safeway Inc.), in Southern California, because of changes in the new proposed labor contract. These changes included cuts in health care and pension benefits, and the creation of a two-tier system in which new workers would be paid on a different schedule than established workers. The day following the strike, Albertsons and Ralphs, owned by Kroger, locked out their Southern California employees.

The strike ended on February 26, 2004 when the UFCW and affected companies reached an agreement on a new labor contract. Union employees voted to end the strike, and many employees cited financial difficulties as a reason for reaching the agreement. The new labor contract included concessions granted by the chains relating to current employee benefits and wages, and concessions granted by the union relating to creating two tiers of employees and cutting benefits overall.

[edit] UFCW and Smithfield Foods

Since the 1990s, the UFCW has been embroiled in a dispute with non-unionized meat processing company Smithfield Foods. The UFCW has repeatedly attempted to organize the company's Bladen County, North Carolina meat-packing plant but Smithfield Foods has resisted this organization. In 2007, Smithfield filed a federal lawsuit against the UFCW citing the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, claiming that the union orchestrated a public smear campaign to hurt Smithfield's business as a method of extorting the company.^[3] In the media, a Smithfield official cited the lawsuit as necessary by claiming that the company was "under attack," while union officials have responded by calling the lawsuit an "attack on democracy and free speech."^[4]

[edit] UFCW and Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart, a non-unionized company, has repeatedly been accused by the UFCW of treating its workers poorly and driving down employment standards. The UFCW has repeatedly attempted to organize the chain, but these attempts have been unsuccessful in the United States.

In Canada, the UFCW managed to win union recognition at two Wal-Mart stores in Quebec. The union has also applied for recognition at a dozen other Wal-Marts.

In April 2005, as part of a volley of accusatory websites created by Wal-Mart and the UFCW, the union created Wake Up Wal-Mart, a U.S.-based website and campaign with the stated goal of reforming Wal-Mart's business practices.^[5]

[edit] Reform Efforts in the UFCW

A number of groups composed of UFCW employees have assembled with stated goals of reforming the UFCW and challenging allegedly corrupt or undemocratic practices.

The oldest such effort, Research-Education-Advocacy-People (REAP), was founded in 1989 and primarily based in the meat packing side of the union.

The UFCW Members for Democracy (MFD) were founded in 1997 as a grassroots slate challenging the leadership of UFCW Local 1518 in British Columbia, Canada. The Members for Democracy later expanded their scope to a broader community of reform-minded workers in the Canadian and U.S. labor movements.

In 2003, workers at Foster Farms plants around Livingston, California voted to leave UFCW Local 1288 and later founded founded the League of Independent Workers of the San Joaquin Valley.

[edit] Criticism

As part of its Wake Up Wal-Mart campaign, the UFCW hired protestors to protest outside a Nevada Wal-Mart. According to one article critical of the union action the protesters were not unionized, were paid less than Wal-Mart employees, had no health insurance, and were hired to stand in hot sun, where one suffered heat stroke.^[6]