The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) officially began in 1979. It was formed by a series of mergers of smaller unions in the early 1900s.
- Over the years, this union has merged with unions representing industries far outside the UFCW’s original food and retail focus, industries such as healthcare, manufacturing, chemicals, textiles, and even insurance.
- The UFCW has a history strikes and high-profile failed attempts at unionization.
- Since 1999, the UFCW has lost more than 208,000 members.
UFCW Membership
Since 2015, 1,753 unfair labor practices charge (ULP), labor law violations, have been filed against the UFCW for a number of complaints:
- “Union Dues and/or Membership Related (including excessive fees)”
- “Coercive Statements (Threats, Promises of Benefits, etc.)”
- “Duty of Fair Representation”
Source: Bloomberg BNA
What It Means to be a UFCW Member
The UFCW’s rules and regulations are designed to govern and control the activities of their members, both on and off the job – and the UFCW defines that control in writing, in a very critical document – the UFCW Constitution.
The UFCW Constitution restricts the freedom of the union’s members and violations of these rules can and do result in disciplinary action, including fines, for union members. The fact remains that the only way to avoid having to work with these restrictions is to avoid working under a union.