An effort to unionize a Natural Grocers store on Tucsonโs east side has failed for now but organizers have vowed to fight on, amid complaints the company engaged in union-busting tactics.
Workers at the Natural Grocers at 7220 E. Broadway, near South Kolb Road, on July 18 voted against joining the United Food and Commercial Workers in a certification vote that would have made the Tucson store only the second Natural Grocers in the nation to unionize.
The vote tally was 7-5 against union representation.
But the union is contesting the results of the election to the National Labor Relations Board, arguing that the ballots of four store workers who were fired by the company, allegedly for their union activities, should have been counted.
The UFCW has filed charges on behalf of four workers with the NLRB, alleging that they were unlawfully discharged and that the company engaged in illegal and concerted retaliation, discharge and discipline.
โWe feel these workers deserve to have a voice in the election,โ said Phoenix-based UFCW spokesman Drake Ridge. โWe believe that they were terminated unfairly, as a result of their affiliation with their work to unionize.โ
In a statement to the Star, the Colorado-based health food chain said it would respect the union election results and denied any anti-union practices.
โWe continue to support and respect our employeesโ right to express their choice on whether to be represented by a union or not,โ the company said in an email response. โIn this instance, a majority of eligible employees voted against having a union represent them at one of our Tucson stores. We believe the vote was fair and is an expression of the will of the majority of our crew.โ
Natural Grocers said it โdoes not retaliate against crew members who support or engage in protected activity,โ adding that the company plans to vigorously defend its actions.
But Ridge said the company has used a โunion-bustingโ labor relations consulting firm to help dissuade its workers from voting to join a union.
Ridge said the four workers who were fired were employees of Natural Grocers when the unfair discharge complaints were filed with the NLRB before the election in June and early July, so if the NLRB finds they were illegally dismissed, their votes should count.
The NLRBโs regional office in Phoenix will investigate the charges against Vitamin Cottage Natural Food Markets Inc., which does business as Natural Grocers, and if they are found to have merit the regional director will issue a complaint, in a process the agency says typically takes seven to 14 weeks.
If the case isnโt settled, hearings on the complaint are held before an NLRB administrative law judge, who decides the case and may order worker reinstatement and back pay in some cases.
The workers at the east Broadway store, one of four in the Tucson area, filed to create a union bargaining unit on June 25, listing 16 eligible workers including full- and regular part-time cashiers, stock workers and lower-level department managers.
Natural Grocers is headquartered in the Denver suburb of Lakewood and has 168 stores in 21 states, including 12 in Arizona.
Its only store with union representation is in Oklahoma City, where workers voted to join the UFCW in May.
