The core organizing group is deciding who to organize with, and the main consideration is UFCW.
Good or no? Any other unions we should consider?
We're an independent retail store
All managers are bastards. Fuckers are causing injuries with malicious management tactics.
Great reply, thank you. There seems to be a couple portential red flags with the UFCW, so I'll bring those up with the group.
Our main concerns right now are staffing levels being kept absurdly low and making the workplace unsafe while we are experiencing record growth, as well as the store manager encouraging schedules to be weaponized against employees they don't like, which has resulted in several injuries so far. The benefits are decent, so switching to the UFCW and their benefits system might scare some people away from voting for it.
We are laying low because the current management seems rather ruthless and we suspect they will start unlawfully firing people if they suspect union activity. One of our hopes with a bigger union would be to have enough legal muscle to scare them away from doing that. Sounds like the UFCW won't step in to help on that front unless the union is voted on? Should we just find a labor lawyer instead? Or is this just a risk we have to take once we start advocating in the open?
Sounds like an independent union that affiliates with a bigger one might be the way to go. Do you (or anyone reading this) happen to know any good resources for that?
Thanks again.
UFCW would most likely help you file ULP charges and navigate that process before an election (especially if you had already signed a card) but American labor law is basically pointless and you'd still be out of a job until you could prove to the board that you were fired for protected activity which can take months or even years if you can prove it at all whether or not you have a large union helping you. Also usually labor lawyers offer services cheaply or freely to working people. Sometimes UFCW will hire workers that get fired but from what I've heard working for UFCW is horrific so not sure I would recommend.
If you have a worker center or maybe a labor education center near you they might be able to help guide you and put you in touch with a lawyer.
As for organizing independently you're going to be doing the same thing for the most part that you would with a large union (assuming you work through the NLRB). Build a committee, map the store, get people to sign cards, petition the NLRB, win an election, and negotiate a contract. I think you'd need to have some sort of charter and officers at some point and if you're handling more than a few hundred dollars as the union you'll need to incorporate as a 501c(5) but those things aren't as complex as they might seem.