You Deserve Respect
and Dignity on the Job

By Michael Tursky,
Secretary-Treasurer, UFCW 8-Golden State

We’ve polled our members and conducted focus groups. And what we heard from them, to slightly paraphrase the lyrics from the popular 1960s song, is “All we’re askin’ for is a little respect.”

Every human being deserves to be treated with respect. Our members are trained to treat each customer in the store with respect.

Which begs the question: Why don’t some managers treat members with the respect they deserve?

Respect is an intangible that does not exact an economic toll on an employer, so one would think that treating workers with respect on the job wouldn’t be much of a problem. But it is.

There are some employers who work with us to foster an atmosphere of cooperation and mutual respect between management and Union members. We want to work to ensure that all employers treat our members fairly and with respect.

If any member feels that he or she is not being treated with dignity or respect on the job, it needs to be brought to the attention of the Union. Because you have a Union, you are protected from harassment or being terminated without cause. We have a grievance procedure that protects member from harassment or retribution by a manager. This is an issue your Union takes quite seriously. We believe that all of our members deserve to be treated with dignity at work.

When a worker is treated with respect and dignity on the job, they are more inclined to stay and want to make a career in the industry. This benefits both the Union and the companies because it creates a more stable and reliable work force.

We want to work with the companies in our industry to keep them viable. A successful company means more jobs and better pay and benefits for our members.

It is of the utmost importance that our members are not only rewarded for hard work, but respected in the workplace as well.

We are committed to raising this issue at the bargaining table. We are also committed to working with those companies that want to find ways to keep career-oriented people in the industry.

Aretha Franklin got it right when it comes to what our members want on the job –– respect.