Wal-Mart staff reject unionization bid

Workers in Thompson, Man., reject union in 61-54 vote

Wal-Mart employees in Thompson, Man., have rejected a unionization drive by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).

Results of a union vote, which took place at the Thompson Wal-Mart store on June 27, were released Wednesday by the Manitoba Labour Board.

The vote was close, with 61 employees voting against the union and 54 in favour. Robert Ziegler, president of UFCW Local 832, told the Globe and Mail he was disappointed with the decision.

“We were quite confident that we would win the vote,” said Ziegler.

Local 832 represents about 15,000 members in the province, including workers at Maple Leaf Foods, Safeway and Westfair Foods.

The ballots were sealed and not counted until August 19 because Wal-Mart and UFCW could not agree on exactly who should be included in the bargaining unit. Of the 12 employees under dispute, the Manitoba Labour Board excluded eight and allowed four.

In a press release, Wal-Mart said it is “fundamentally committed to open communication in the workplace” and criticized Manitoba labour law.

“Wal-Mart was extremely limited in its communication to its own associates about the issues of unionization throughout the union’s lengthy organizing drive in Thompson. In sharp contrast, the union was virtually unrestricted in their communication rights,” the release stated. “Despite the severe restrictions on employer communication rights in Manitoba, Wal-Mart associates have chosen, once again, to deal directly with the company instead of opting for third-party representation.”

Ziegler said the union is going to continue attempts to unionize a Wal-Mart store in Manitoba.

“We’re still very optimistic because 47 per cent of the people wanted to be represented by a union,” he told the Globe and Mail. “We’ll meet with our membership and find out what changed their mind. As long as there’s a Wal-Mart associate that wants to be represented by a union and have the benefits, we’ll keep the drive going.”

There has only been one successful union drive involving Wal-Mart employees, but it was short lived. In February, 2000, meat cutters at a Wal-Mart in Jacksonville, Tex. voted to join a union. But soon after the vote, that Wal-Mart store moved away from freshly cut meat and the meat department at the Jacksonville store was closed.

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