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Trader Joe’s workers vote yes to a union in California

But employees at a New York City store fail to get the 50% plus one approval

Bill Wilson, Senior editor at Supermarket News

April 24, 2023

1 Min Read

A fourth story may be joining Trader Joe's United after a successful union vote. 

According to Huffpost, Trader Joe’s workers at the Rockbridge store in Oakland, Calif., voted to unionize by a 73-53 count. There now could be four Trader Joe’s that have employees who are members of Trader Joe’s United. However, those at the Essex Crossing Trader Joe’s in New York City failed to get the 50% plus one to form a union. The vote was a tie at 76-76. This was the second time an attempt to unionize at a NYC store failed over the last few months.

“We had endless conversations with our coworkers. We sent countless texts and phone calls, and gathered together to celebrate and connect about the future we wanted to see at work,” Trader Joe’s United tweeted after the NYC vote. “But the reality is, the barriers to working people winning against corporations in this country are huge.”

Trader Joe’s now has a week to challenge the vote in Oakland. The Monrovia, Calif.-based retailer has contested the union approval in Kentucky, but the National Labor Relations Board has not released a decision yet.

Back in 2022, Trader Joe’s announced it was cutting retirement contributions, and that is when the calls to unionize began. Those who want the solidarity are demanding better wages, guaranteed benefits and more oversight over scheduling and safety protocols.

Related:Trader Joe's widening price gap with Whole Foods: Analyst

About the Author

Bill Wilson

Senior editor at Supermarket News

Bill Wilson is the senior editor at Supermarket News, covering all things grocery and retail. He has been a journalist in the B2B industry for 25 years. He has received two Robert F. Boger awards for his work as a journalist in the infrastructure industry and has over 25 editorial awards total in his career. He graduated cum laude from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale with a major in broadcast communications.

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