The UFCW has been empowering America’s workers for decades, fighting for better wages, good benefits and higher standards of living. Workers today face growing challenges and need unions now more than ever. Companies merge to cut costs, often at the expense of their employees. Wages and benefits are decreasing, yet the cost of living continues to rise sharply. The middle class is dwindling and the American Dream is slipping out of reach for many workers. As corporations grow and consolidate their power, unions must also grow and combine resources to be more powerful in confronting these challenges.
The UFCW has redoubled its efforts to empower workers and restore the balance between employers and employees. Foreseeing the challenges ahead, the UFCW is forging new strategies for growing a stronger union that is proactive, not reactive–a union taking on today’s challenges and preparing for tomorrow’s battles.
These efforts start from the ground. Members are leading these changes by focusing on uniting more members for greater strength in the workplace and at the bargaining table. And the results have shown that by planning for the future, local unions have put workers in a stronger position and increased union density. Together they are setting a new standard for the labor movement.
“Nowadays, we have more organizers outthere,” says Richard Vazquez, a steward from Local 540 in Plainview, Texas. “The more organizers we have to help workers form a union, the stronger we will be. With more members, we can speak with one voice and have more power at the bargaining table.”
“It is important that all the plants have a union,” he continues. “Because then we can have better benefits and wages for all.”
Vazquez has been a union member for 18 of the 21 years he has worked at the meatpacking plant. For nine of those years, he has worked as a steward.
“There have been a lot of good changes throughout the years,” says Vazquez. “Even now we have an office here in the plant, where we can help more workers band we can be closer to them. And we’ve seen the difference first hand with more membership and more density.”
For the past 10 years, David Espinosa Rangel has worked as a truck loader for a food company in Salinas, California. Since his first day on the job as a new member of Local 1096, he has been an active union member. Three years ago, Rangel became a steward.
On January 1, 2007, his local merged with UFCW Locals 120, 373R, 428, 839, 870 and 1179, to form Local 5, based in San Jose, California.
“When I heard about the merger, I thought it was an excellent idea because I knew we were going to have more members working together, and a stronger voice to negotiate,” says Rangel.
Rangel said that before the merger, some locals were too small and not strong enough. “Now we are over 20,000 members and we are very strong. We are stronger at the bargaining table and we can get better benefits and wages to all workers.”
He says one of the main advantages of the merger is that there are more available resources.
“It is easier to organize more people because there is more money and more support. Other workers who are not organized can see how we have a better standard of living, and they are more interested in organizing a union at their workplace. Every worker in America needs to join a union. Together, we can reach a better life- -with one union speaking with one voice.
