Trader Joe’s Workers Rally Outside of Trader Joe’s Boston Corporate Offices, Demand End to Union-Busting and Retaliation
Yesterday, a throng of Trader Joe’s workers from Hadley, MA and supporters gathered outside Traders Joe’s corporate offices in Boston to demand an end to the company’s rampant union-busting practices. Workers also delivered a petition, signed by over 22,000 community members, calling for the reinstatement of coworker Steve Andrade, who was fired from the Hadley, MA location in retaliation for his union support.
The Hadley, MA Trader Joe’s location is the birthplace of Trader Joe’s United, the independent and unaffiliated union of Trader Joe’s workers. On July 28, 2022, workers there voted to unionize, becoming the first store in the country to do so, and creating Trader Joe’s United in the process. Since then, three more stores have voted to join TJU: Minneapolis, MN; Louisville, KY; and Oakland, CA.
The protest yesterday focused on two demands: an end to Trader Joe’s union-busting campaign, and the reinstatement of Steve Andrade.
On June 8th of this year, Trader Joe’s terminated Andrade, a long term employee and vocal union supporter. According to the termination paperwork given to Andrade, the basis for the firing was his failure to remove a small powertool from the store’s premises. However, the power tool in question, a jigsaw, did not belong to Andrade, and predated the beginning of his tenure at the store. Trader Joe’s United filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board in response, and is awaiting a determination from the NLRB.
The National Labor Relations Board has already found merit in numerous other charges filed by the union against Trader Joe’s. Last month, the NLRB released a complaint alleging that Trader Joe’s retaliated against Hadley employees for their union activities, interrogated and threatened workers, and forced employees to attend unlawful captive audience meetings. In addition, the NLRB cites a number of breakroom postings from the employer containing misinformation about Trader Joe’s United.
At yesterday’s rally, the crowd spoke, chanted, and marched on the sidewalk outside the company’s office building at 160 Federal St. in Boston for nearly two hours. While security would not allow the group inside of the building, two workers were permitted to enter the lobby to deliver the union’s petition.
“This is a clear message to Trader Joe’s that it’s not just workers who want an end to the retaliation and union-busting we’re experiencing,” said Maeg Yosef, a worker from the Hadley store. “The community and Trader Joe’s customers are not going to stand for these union-busting tactics, either.”
Download photos from the rally here. (photo credits: Ashley See)
