Picketing at Greenway Market?

FormallyJerseyJack reported seeing picketing in front of Greenway Market a couple of days ago but was unable to stop and inquire.

I can’t find anything online - does anyone know about this or where I could find out more?

Not a union shop

Kings was union

--looks like the pickets are gone this morning.

They couldn’t go in the “cash only” lane because pickets charge. 

(caught between thumbs up and gah)

Thanks Max

max_weisenfeld said:

Not a union shop

Kings was union

Pickets were back today.

mrincredible said:

They couldn’t go in the “cash only” lane because pickets charge. 

If your nose went on strike would you picket?

chalmers said:

If your nose went on strike would you picket?

you may think that’s funny but it’s not

mrincredible said:

you may think that’s funny but it’s not

It’s an informational picket. That is to say, while they hope their nays’ll influence you to shop elsewhere, you’re not crossing a strike-level picket line if you decide to go into Green Way anyway.

Hmm that’s a new one on me.  Just wouldn’t feel right crossing it though but will think it over…

Already had my heart broken when I had to quit Trader Joe’s in response to their Union busting 

Some of us who don't drive rely on their being a supermarket in the Village.  Those so impacted would have little choice but to enter the establishment even if there were pickets outside.  There are too few sources for groceries in Maplewood as it is.

Totally understood, was speaking for myself 

For the record many large chains around here aren’t union shops - what I specifically object to are are those that actively participate in union busting or close down their stores that voted unions in

“Please … please … please … not intended to prevent or coerce anyone.”

Greenway might not be able to pay higher wages. We keep forgetting how much it costs to run a business in mapso. They’re advising shoppers to patronize the bigger supermarket chains…. Maybe they should apply for jobs there. 

Jaytee said:

They’re advising shoppers to patronize the bigger supermarket chains…. Maybe they should apply for jobs there.

Done that.

“From the more than 22,000 members of UFCW Local 1262 — your friends and neighbors employed by ShopRite, Stop & Shop, Dearborn Market, Foodtown and other Union Supermarkets!”

This breaks my heart, because I love having a market I can walk to in the village, but I try to avoid crossing picket lines, whether informational or strike-related.  I went in the other night when the pickets had dispersed to get one item and asked an employee whether they thought the owner would accept a union.  This person told me that the owner of Greenway Market owns Foodtown, which, as the flyer indicates, is a union shop.  I sincerely hope that the owner can see their way clear to allowing the Greenway to unionize, too.  

Does anyone reading this thread know if the salary and benefits received by Greenway employees are substantially lower than those received by Union workers or if this picketing is primarily an attempt to unionize the Greenway employees without these employees receiving additional compensation as a result of unionization?

According to the leaflet they do not…

The flyer posted above does not actually state that Greenway employees at the Maplewood Avenue location receive substantially lower salary and benefits than Unionized employees performing comparable duties.  It just states that Greenway employees do not have the benefit of Union representation.

joan_crystal said:

The flyer posted above does not actually state that Greenway employees at the Maplewood Avenue location receive substantially lower salary and benefits than Unionized employees performing comparable duties. It just states that Greenway employees do not have the benefit of Union representation.

It says Green Way “does not provide its workers with the wages” that a union contract provides. It does not state how sustantial the difference is.

Jaytee said:

Greenway might not be able to pay higher wages. We keep forgetting how much it costs to run a business in mapso. They’re advising shoppers to patronize the bigger supermarket chains…. Maybe they should apply for jobs there. 

When Kings was running the village location, "village" was the most profitable location per sq. ft. of all their stores. That included Short Hills.

DaveSchmidt said:

It says Green Way “does not provide its workers with the wages” that a union contract provides.” It does not state how sustantial the difference is.

Even if Greenway employees were paid more than what is in the contract, they would not be receiving the wages provided in the Union contract. More information is needed to determine what impact if any unionization would have on the wages received by Greenway employees.

Jaytee said:

Greenway might not be able to pay higher wages. We keep forgetting how much it costs to run a business in mapso. They’re advising shoppers to patronize the bigger supermarket chains…. Maybe they should apply for jobs there. 

We don't know, based solely on the above posted flyer if Greenway employees are being paid lower wages than those given employees of the businesses specified in that flyer.  We don't know if Kings employees at the Maplewood Avenue location were being paid the same wages as employees of businesses specified in the above flyer, if the Kings employees at the Maplewood Avenue location were members of the Union, or if any Kings employees retained by Greenway saw a change in their wages, hours, working conditions, or benefits as a result of the shift in ownership. All we have is the implication that employees of Greenway would benefit from Union representation.

joan_crystal said:

Even if Greenway employees were paid more than what is in the contract, they would not be receiving the wages provided in the Union contract.

You’re saying the UFCW may have put a dishonest spin on that sentence’s plain meaning. As a member of a union myself, I give the UFCW more credit than that.

I do not see this flyer as deceitful.  I do see it as an attempt to reduce the number of non-union shops whose employees could elect union representation, thereby increasing the union's power in future collective bargaining negotiations. 

Since we are lacking data, we have to fall back on the general condition that, in the aggregate, unions are good for both workers and communities

https://www.epi.org/publication/unions-and-well-being/

Excellent post Max - thanks for sharing that!

DaveSchmidt said:

joan_crystal said:

Even if Greenway employees were paid more than what is in the contract, they would not be receiving the wages provided in the Union contract.

You’re saying the UFCW may have put a dishonest spin on that sentence’s plain meaning. As a member of a union myself, I give the UFCW more credit than that.

It's in the union's best interest to spin things in their favor. It may be true that union employees do make more, but that may be washed out by union dues. I'm not at all anti-union. But I have worked with some unions that were deceptive towards employees who they wanted to join the union.  In my case, the employees didn't think the potential union benefits were worth it.