What is a union?
A union is an organization of employees seeking collective bargaining with their employer. Webster's definition of a labor union is "an organization of workers formed for the purpose of advancing its members' interests in respect to wages, benefits, and working conditions." With the help of a union, workers negotiate a contract with their employer to ensure these things.

Who runs the union?
You and your fellow workers run the union. Proposals for negotiations are taken from our members.

How does the union work?
After a majority of workers in your workplace vote for a union, a negotiating committee composed of co-workers will represent you. The negotiating committee will then survey workers to see what they want in their contract. With the assistance of union negotiators, the committee will bargain with management to negotiate a contract. Legally, both sides must bargain in "good faith," meaning they must be willing to work together and reach an agreement on a contract. Issues typically discussed are wages, benefits, and working conditions. Once a majority of workers approve a contract, it immediately goes into effect.

What does UFCW stand for?
United Food and Commercial Workers. This gets us back to our neighborhoods where we basically set America's table. Whether meat or canned goods, deli items or poultry, condiments or soups, we make the food industry work by processing, packaging, warehousing, displaying, ringing up, and bagging the food that ends up on your kitchen tables. You see us everyday at the check stands and deli and meat counters of your neighborhood supermarkets. We also work in hundreds of other occupations, where we're not so easily noticed. We make hunting and other apparel and textile products, the prescription and over- the-counter drugs we pick up at the local pharmacy, leather goods, wines and spirits, fertilizer, and literally thousands of common household items. We are your health care workers as well. That's why the UFCW is America's good neighbor union.

Can we lose the benefits we have now if we unionize?
No. Threatening to take away your benefits is a commonly used scare tactic employers use to keep workers from forming a union. The purpose of forming a union is to win improvements within the workplace, not lose them. On average, unionized workers earn a third more than non-unionized workers in wages and benefits.

What benefits can the union guarantee?
When workers come together with the strength of the union behind them, they have the power to bargain and a collective voice that could not be achieved without a union. Because it is you, the workers, who make the decisions about your contract, no guarantees can be made. However, once the union is voted in, the contract will be legally binding and the union will make sure it's enforced.

Won't the union force me to go on strike?
The UFCW never forces anyone to strike. Members have the final say through a vote. The overwhelming fact is strikes rarely happen. The UFCW negotiates more that 1,500 collective bargaining contracts each year, and strikes occur in less than one percent of these negotiations.

When UFCW members aren't in collective bargaining, what do they do?
We help make our communities a better place to live and support lawmakers who look out for the concerns of working families. While good union jobs with solid health and pension benefits give our families peace of mind, the UFCW is about more than jobs and paychecks. We want all workers to fully participate in the benefits of the economy they help build and sustain. No one who works hard every day and plays by the rules should be left behind in our economy. Decent wages make our communities more prosperous because our consumer dollars help support local businesses and our tax dollars ensure good public safety, public education and other services. We often join with community and religious groups to resolve issues of local concern, from community improvement projects to raising money for our public schools and local charities. As union members, we also stay active, encouraging friends and neighbors to vote and participate more fully in our democratic system. Like all union members, we take civic responsibilities seriously. More than 70 percent of eligible union members vote compared with only 48 percent of all eligible voters who vote in elections.