Moving Forward, Together

As you likely already know, the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) is holding an election at the Food Co-op, for employees to decide whether they should be represented by that union in our workplace.

Workers in Washington State have the right to consider organizing to be represented for collective bargaining. Should the Food Co-op’s employees choose to unionize, we look forward to bargaining with them in good faith to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.

We also know there are lots of questions about the process of the election and what a union would mean for the co-op, our members and the community we serve. However, the upcoming election is only about one thing: whether the Food-Co-op will deal exclusively with the UFCW regarding the terms and conditions of the work for eligible employees (full-time and regular part-time non-exempt), excluding managers and administrative staff.

Democratic participation and education are core values of The Food Co-op. We firmly believe it is our duty to protect our staff’s right to a secret ballot election overseen by the National Labor Relations Board, the governing agency. That election will take place on Wednesday the 19th of February 2025. Once we know the outcome of the election, we’ll be sure to update you. And regardless of the outcome, we will accept the results of the election and will continue to work with our crew to make the Food Co-op the best workplace and store we can be!

 In the meantime, please be gentle with our staff and resist asking them how they plan to vote.  I know it’s tempting but please don’t.  Many thanks –

In gratitude, appreciation and cooperation!  Kenna