UFCW is the union for workers in the wine and spirits industry.
The Distillery, Wine, and Allied Workers Division at UFCW represents the workers who make, transport, and sell beloved brands like Jim Beam, E & J Gallo, Mondavi, and Sazerac Co.
We help workers get their fair share by negotiating strong contracts with built-in wage increases, affordable health care, equal pay, and workplace safety protections — from production and processing to distribution and sales.
HEAR FROM OUR MEMBERS
“For years, management pushed us harder and faster to reach continuously higher production goals while our facility and systems deteriorated. Going union is our push to make our management provide so that we can do our jobs safely and fairly and earn a living wage. We’re excited to have new protections, as well as a clear path to earn fair and consistent raises.”
“I’m proud to have supported our team in pushing for what we wanted, a union!”
“I’m pro-union because everyone deserves to be treated equally!”
What are Distillery, Winery, and Brewery Workers Winning with Their Unions?
Better Raises and Benefits
Having a union means having a voice. That’s how workers nationwide have secured affordable healthcare, increased pay, fair overtime provisions, and retirement security. For example, winery members with UFCW Local 186D in Ripon, Calif., recently negotiated a contract with guaranteed raises, swing shift and graveyard pay, an attendance bonus, and other additional benefits.
Unions can also open contracts and negotiate changes for our members. That is how Empire Merchants’ sales representatives in Brooklyn, N.Y., and represented by UFCW Local 2D negotiated a new reimbursement benefit to offset the spike in travel costs due to New York City’s new traffic congestion pricing program. Thanks to their updated union contract, they’ll be reimbursed for much of the additional costs.
Higher Safety Standards
When you have a union contract, you can secure proper equipment, regular training, and anything else you need to do your best work. Then, you can hold your employer accountable for meeting those standards. Contracts are one of the most powerful tools for enforcing and expanding workplace safety beyond the minimum of what the law requires.
Job Security
When you have a union on your side, management can’t fire you arbitrarily. A UFCW Local 1D member in N.Y. won over $83,000 in back pay and benefits when an arbitrator ruled that the company violated the union contract when the worker was fired without just cause.
Work-Life Balance
You deserve a living wage and the time to enjoy your life. With a union, you can negotiate schedules and policies that make that possible.
Ready to start a union at your distillery or winery?
Ready to negotiate together for bigger paychecks, stronger benefits and better lives? If you are, the steps to joining the UFCW are simple.
Frequently Asked Questions
Our union distillers, brewers, production workers, distributors, and salespeople have won strong contracts to secure job protections, wage increases, guaranteed holiday pay, retirement benefits, safer working conditions, and much more.
Even if things are going well, a union can make them better. Organizing with your coworkers gives you the power to improve your workplace in ways you never could alone and to protect the things you already love about your job. A strong contract can also ensure those gains don’t disappear if the company is ever sold, bought out, or restructured.
That’s why when a bourbon distillery in Kentucky was sold to a California-based winery, UFCW Locals 10D and 23D were able to negotiate with the company to keep their existing contracts, ensuring that members continued to have fair pay, good benefits, and a voice on the job.
Under the National Labor Relations Act, you have a federally protected right to organize. That means your employer cannot legally punish you for talking to coworkers about forming a union or for reaching out to us. Connect with an experienced organizer who can walk you through the process and explain what to expect. {Jump to Form}
Union dues are usually a very small portion of your weekly pay. However, you don’t start paying union dues until you vote to ratify your first contract. This means you only start paying once you feel your union contract is worth the membership cost.
Ask yourself this – would you ever vote to approve a contract that didn’t leave you better off?
We represent a range of facilities across the country — from some of America’s most beloved whiskies like Jim Beam, Four Roses, Heaven Hill, or Wild Turkey, to your favorite wine and champagne producers like E&J Gallo, Andre, CK Mondavi, and more.
CONSIDERING UNIONIZING AT YOUR WORKPLACE?
Fill out this form to be connected with an experienced organizer.
