Philadelphia Whole Foods Store 1st to Unionize
Workers at the flagship Whole Foods store in Philadelphia voted this week to join United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) Local 1776, forming the first union for the Amazon-owned supermarket chain. As reported by CNN, 130 workers voted in favor and 100 workers voted against the move.
Whole Foods said in a statement that it was “disappointed” by the results of the vote, but added that it was “committed to maintaining a positive working environment in our Philly Center City store.”
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The company added that it “is proud to offer competitive compensation, great benefits and career advancement opportunities to all team members.”
In November, when the Philadelphia workers first filed their formal petition to hold the union vote, UFCW said in a statement that the associates were fighting for better compensation and working conditions.
“Companies must remember that grocery workers play an essential role by helping families put food on their tables. It is their hard work that keeps shelves stocked, groceries bagged and customers coming back,” noted Marc Perrone, international president of Washington D.C.-based UFCW.
“Our union family is committed to supporting Whole Foods members as they begin to negotiate a contract that reflects their value and ensuring that grocery workers everywhere have the opportunity to achieve the better future they deserve,” he continued.
UFCW International is the largest private-sector union in the United States, representing 1.2 million workers and their families in the grocery, meatpacking, food-processing, health care, cannabis, retail and other essential industries.
Part of Amazon’s Worldwide Grocery Stores, Whole Foods Market serves customers in more than 530 stores across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Parent company Amazon is No. 2 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2024 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. Both Whole Foods and Amazon were named among PG’s Retailers of the Century.
