UFCW Disgrace:Grocery Workers Need Your Help!

This was the templet for the demise of the grocery industry being considered an acceptable middle class job. Whether through big egos or just plain incompetence the UFCW completely dropped the ball and under estimated the power of the corporate grocery giants. While corporate CEO’s went home at night to their mansions and UFCW’s local leaders retreated to their gated communities (payed for by members dues) 70,000 dues paying members lives and carriers were changed forever. UFCW had "no national plan" to collectively fight these grocery behemoths. Some insiders and critics even allege that the disastrous results of the Southern Cal grocery strike was an collaborate plan between UFCW top officials and corporate grocery giants to lower living standards for UFCW grocery workers making it easier for the grocery giants to compete with companies like Walmart.

After UFCW’s 2003 Southern California debacle some UFCW leaders tried to do some damage control in 2007 by saying all the right things, even advocating an "National Approach".

See here: http://www.ufcw8.org/index.cfm?zone=/unionactive/view_article.cfm&HomeID=43075

It’s even quoted that UFCW’s International President Joe Hansen has created "National Bargaining Committee". Had the UFCW actually learned from their mistakes in 2003? We were hopeful.

In 2007 Southern California and Northern California UFCW locals even hinted at collaborating contract expiration dates to bring strength between So Cal and Nor Cal locals. Great words, great thoughts, but would the UFCW really execute this kind of collective strength against their grocery giant business partners? Only time would tell.

Fast forward March 6, 2011 Southern California grocery workers enter into contract negotiations. Keep in mind that Northern California master grocery contracts expire October 8, 20ll. With a little over a month of negotiations grocery’s corporate demands a proposal stuffed with concessions

The UFCW then "rushes" a <a href="http://www.laborunionreport.com/portal/2011/04/socal-ufcw-members-vote-to-strike-60000-">strike vote As you can see by this video the UFCW members in Southern Cal are already talking about "paying their fair share"! It's obvious by their remarks that their UFCW leaders have taken them into these negotiations with another concessions mind set! Have these UFCW members since 2003 not already "paid their fair share"??? Will the UFCW officers & staff be taking concessions with their salaries and health and welfare? When will these grocery giants making huge profits off the backs of these UFCW members start paying their fare share? What’s up with the hurry on the strike vote? What happened with all the UFCW’s big talk about a "National Approach" and "Collaborating contract expiration dates"? What’s the damn hurry UFCW? Were’s International President Joe Hansen’s "National Bargaining Committee" now?

Interesting that the UFCW is in such a rush to cut a deal with all the big grocers in Southern Cal considering that their members working for Rite-Aid in some UFCW locals are approaching one year and still don’t have a contract. Very sad commentary for UFCW/Rite Aid members, no rush for them!

We may have answers to UFCW’s "rush job" on the Southern Cal grocery negotiations. It has been alleged by some inside the UFCW that rush job on the So Cal deal is due to an upcoming UFCW event that includes fine dinning, lavish hotel stays and yes... "golf"!

UFCW’s "Person of the Year" gala will be held on June 2, 2011. Please see UFCW Western State Council’s invitation here

The event will be held at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Hotel at a minimum of $179 a night. (And yes this is paid for with members dues money)!

June 1, 2011 golf at Maderas Golf Club in Poway, Ca (San Deigo)

This years UFCW award goes to John Perez . Would seem Perez has a following

For any UFCW member or others interested who would like to view the salaries of the UFCW officials responsible for this extravagant event while 60,000 dues paying UFCW members working futures teeters on the edge of disaster visit this link http://kcerds.dol-esa.gov/query/getOrgQry.do and use this file # 533-806

For any UFCW member, Union Activist or Supporters of Labor who are as outraged and disgusted as we are over UFCW’s lack of priorities when it comes to their dues paying members we are asking you to contact UFCW Western State Council’s Dana Palmer at (714) 670-5580.

DEMAND... THAT THE UFCW CANCEL THIS EVENT UNTIL THEIR SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MEMBERS HAVE A CONTRACT WITH WAGE INCREASES, INCREASES MADE TO THE PENSION, AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE, PRESERVATION OF THE GOLDEN 85, LAUNGUAGE THAT PROTECTS WORKERS RIGHTS AND THE ELIMINATION OF THE "NO STRIKE NO LOCK OUT" LAUNGUAGE THAT CHASTISES THE UNION FROM ORGANIZING A "NATIONAL APPROACH" TO BATTLING THE CORPORATE GROCERY GIANTS GREED!

If the UFCW has so much time on their hands to hold such lavish parties on the members dime they surely have the time to achieve the mentioned demands above!

If you'd like to email the Western States Council and voice your outrage their email address is Admin [at] WSCUFCW.ORG

If you'd like to voice your concerns one step further you can contact the LA Times reporter following the grocery negotiations. Contact P.J. Huffstutter at p.j.huffstutter [at] latimes.com

Let's make our voice heard! Let's support our working sisters & brothers in the Southern California grocery industry and let them know we understand their struggle and support their fight for an acceptable contract! Let them know we will not accept the abuse of their hard earned dues money! Let them know that we all stand in solidarity buy flooding the Western States Council with phone calls and emails voicing are complaints about the UFCW's disgraceful behavior.

Many think nothing can be done about the grocery industries "race to the bottom"! Many members feel hopeless.

Throughout the country, union leaders are selling concessions and cuts in wages and benefits as being necessary to help "their" employers compete with the non-union employers. The grocery industry and the UFCW are no different. Since the non-union employers base their pay on a per centage of the union pay, cuts to union workers only lead to cuts for the non union, creating a vicious circle. What this really amounts to is union workers competing with non-union workers for who can work cheapest. This violates the very purpose of having a union, which is to eliminate this sort of competition.

The alternative is to organize the members for real raises in wages - a $20 per hour minimum pay in the grocery industry plus full benefits for all members plus their dependents and a pension plan with full health benefits. The members must be mobilized nationally to establish this as the national standard. A direct appeal should be made to all workers to help us win these advances, and it should be explained that this is the start of winning this for all workers in the US. On this basis, this same movement could be directed at the non-union work force, including the non-union grocery workers and the mass movement could help them organize and win the same contract.

This is the alternative to the race to the bottom that we are now facing.

Let's all start working towards the "alternative"! We can start by making our calls of protest to UFCW's Western State Council and letting them know that we are paying attention and we demand that the UFCW act in the best interest of the dues paying members and stop playing "business partners" with the corporate boss!

We thank you for your support and solidarity!