UNFI WORKERS IN PENNSYLVANIA JOIN TEAMSTERS

News provided by

International Brotherhood of Teamsters

May 28, 2024, 11:42 ET

Organizing Streak Continues as 75 Drivers Become Third Group to Unionize in a Month

HARRISBURG, Pa., May 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Drivers at United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI) in Harrisburg, Pa., have voted nearly unanimously to join Teamsters Local 776. The 75-worker group overcame a nasty union-busting campaign by the food distributor, taking their fight to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to beat back efforts to outsource their jobs to notorious nonunion company J.B. Hunt.

UNFI Teamsters are seeking strong representation to address years of worker concerns amid company mismanagement.

"Organizing to become Teamsters helped bring us together for the greater cause. With Teamsters representation, we are now more confident knowing that everyone will have a say in our future," said Carlos Lugaro, a UNFI driver who helped lead the organizing effort. "I am proud that we held together in the face of the turmoil and discomfort of an unknown future. We can now move forward with the confidence of knowing we are not alone."

Lugaro and his co-workers are seeking a strong Teamsters contract that will improve wages, health care and retirement benefits, job security, and working conditions.

"Despite challenges, UNFI drivers at the Harrisburg facility were committed to become Teamsters since day one. They refused to fall for the company's union-busting tactics and stood arm-and-arm with Teamsters Local 776 to fight back. Workers proved to the NLRB that UNFI was trying to outsource their jobs to a third party to break up union organizing efforts," said Ed Thompson, President of Local 776.

The organizing victory in Harrisburg is part of a national worker-led movement to unionize UNFI and follows recent wins in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Florida, Iowa, Pennsylvania, and Washington. In May alone, more than 250 UNFI workers joined the Teamsters at three different UNFI locations. Since 2022, over 1,500 workers at the company have become Teamsters nationwide.

"Drivers in Harrisburg showed courage and put it all on the line to secure this crucial victory," said Tom Erickson, Director of the Teamsters Warehouse Division. "UNFI workers know that the Teamsters are relentless in our fight for a better workplace. This victory in Harrisburg is just another example of workers' resolve to take control of their future. We will not rest until every UNFI worker in this country has the representation and respect they deserve."

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and "like" us on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.

Contact:
Daniel Moskowitz, (770) 262-4971
[email protected]

SOURCE International Brotherhood of Teamsters