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Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW

From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki









Overview

Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW....[1][2] is a labor union[3][4] representing approximately 13,000 working men and women across New York State and New Jersey. Industries they represent include, grocery[5] and food retail, food production, pharmaceutical retail, health care and human services, New York State’s cannabis[6][7][8] industry, school bus drivers, and school aides.

History

Formation and early years

Local 338 was established in 1925 by a group of Jewish immigrants working at appetizing and dairy stores who sought to improve their working conditions. The workers received support from several organizations, including the United Hebrew Trade[9]s Council (UHTC[10]), a Jewish Labor Federation. The first Local 338 office was lent to them by the Teamsters[11] and was located on the Lower East Side in Manhattan.

Local 338 elected its first president, Samuel Wolchok[12], in 1935. Wolchok later went on to form the Retail, Wholesale, Department Store Union (RWDSU[13]), which set out to change the working conditions for all retail workers across the country. In September of 1941 the union adopted its first constitution, which set the guidelines for the membership and leadership.

Serving the membership through World War II

Many Local 338 members served in the military throughout World War II, and Local 338 actively sent supplies overseas and purchased war bonds throught the course of the war. Local 338 established the Local 338 Health and Welfare Fund in response to the decline of accessible social services in 1941.

The union newspaper, 338 News[14], was created in 1940 and was used to correspond with members in the military. In 1942, the union secured their first contract[15] with the supermarket chain Waldbaum’s[16].

Shortly following the end of World War II, Local 338 introduced several new benefits to the membership, including the development of a pension fund, as well as optical and dental benefits. Local 338 also mandated a 5-day, 40-hour workweek for members through contract negotiations.

Civil Rights Movement

Local 338 had outspokenly supported the Civil Rights movement[17] and was among the first unions to have people of color in positions of leadership. Alongside the RWDSU, Local 338 was among the first unions in the country to negotiate Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a paid holiday in a contract.

Charity Work

Local 338 is an active member[18][19] in the communities in which its members live and work, giving to charities as early as the 1940’s. In the early 1980’s, under the leadership of President Emanuel Laub[20], the union began giving to children’s charities such as the United Cerebral Palsy Foundation[21].

After the September 11th attacks, Local 338 took immediate action and with the support the members of Local 338 collected and donated food and supplies for those in need. At that time the Union also established an annual blood drive[22] through a partnership with the New York Blood Center during this time as well, honoring the service men and women who lost their lives that day.

Local 338 regularly works with several organizations across New York, participating in toy drives[23] and school supplies drives for the John Theissen Children’s Foundation[18] and collecting nonperishables to donate to Island Harvest every May for the National Association of Letter Carrier’s Stamp Out Hunger food drive[24][25]. Coats and turkeys are also collected during the holiday season to be donated to those in need.

Present

Local 338 has been on the forefront of several progressive labor issues, including the legalization[26] of medical cannabis[27] in New York with the passage of the Compassionate Care Act[28] in 2014. Since then, Local 338 has organized hundreds of cannabis workers across the state and is actively working with state legislators and advocates to pass legislation to legalize adult-use cannabis[29]

The union has been part of campaigns to establish wage theft protections[30] and living wage provisions, as well legislation to protect grocery store workers in New York City. They also advocate for funding to support non-profits that care for the developmentally disabled and their members who work at these organizations. In addition, Local 338 has partnered with community organizations since the 2000’s to bring a voice to underrepresented workers in the food retail sector.

A Changing Industry

The A&P bankruptcy[31] in 2015 led to Local 338 losing nearly 3,000 members. In the following years, Local 338 has participated in campaigns to unionize workers at the grocery chain Best Market (which has been acquired by Lidl) with their international union, the UFCW[32].

Over the last 20 years, Local 338 has worked to diversify the types of industries they represent. As the retail industry evolves, Local 338 expanded to represent workers in all types of industries, including bus drivers, pharmacists[33], school aides[34][35], workers in health care[36] and human services and more. Along with continuing to unionize the cannabis[36] sector, the union has recently begun to organize workers in the farmworker industry[37][38].

Industries Local 338 Represents

Food Retail

Local 338 was originally established as a grocery, appetizing and dairy stores union, and has continued to represent and provide grocery workers protections for 95 years. They currently represent a variety of supermarkets throughout New York, including Key Food, Food Universe, Foodtown, ACME, C-Town, Morton Williams, ShopRite, Stop and Shop, Gristede’s, DeCicco & Sons, DeCicco Family Markets, Trade Fair and Zabar’s.

Pharmaceutical Retail

The first contract Local 338 had with Duane Reade[39] was ratified in 2006[40][33]. Several thousand workers, including cashiers, pharmacy techs, and pharmacists are represented by Local 338. The union shares jurisdiction with Local 340A, an affiliate of the SEIU[41][42]. Together, they negotiate on behalf of members to bring them a contract that improved their workplace.

In 2001, when Local 338 merged with the Allied Trades Council, they gained their Duane Reade[43] membership as well as 15 independent pharmacies. Today, they represent Windsor Chemists, the last of the original pharmacies to join with this merger.

Additionally, Local 338 represents independent pharmacies and those that operate within ShopRite and Stop & Shop supermarkets.

Cannabis

Local 338 represents several hundred men and women working in New York’s medical cannabis[44][6] industry in a variety of different roles, including cultivation, manufacturing and process, distribution and retail. After meeting with industry leaders, scientists, advocates and workers, the union helped craft the state’s Compassionate Care Act[45][46], which legalized medical-use cannabis in the state in 2014[46][45]. Since then, Local 338 has been actively unionizing the medical cannabis industry. Local 338 represents the workers in the New York State locations of MedMen, PharmaCann, Vireo Health New York[36], Curaleaf, Citiva, Acreage  and CRESCO Labs.

Healthcare and Human Services

Local 338 currently represents direct caregivers and other support staff at the Institute of Applied Human Dynamics (IAHD), Innovative Resources for Independence (IRI) and Community Resources. In 2019, the workers at IRI joined the union[47] and their first contract went into effect in early 2020.

In addition to direct caregivers, the union represents LPNs and certified nursing aides, rehab aides and recreation aides at several nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Local 338 also represents workers at nonprofit organizations, including Meals on Wheels drivers at Wayside and Riseboro (where the union also represents case managers). These members provide crucial access to hot meals on a daily basis and have continued to do their job during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Local 338 also represents building supers, handymen and porters at a several organizations in New York City that provide affordable housing.

Bus Drivers and School Monitors

In 2009, Local 305 RWDSU merged with Local 338. The merger brought with it bus drivers for First Student’s Mount Vernon and New Rochelle yards in Westchester County. The union won an election in 2015 to represent more First Student drivers in New Jersey in their Rochelle Park yard, and their first contract went into effect that October.

In 2010, Local 338 successfully organized school lunch monitors in the Mount Vernon school district in Westchester, NY[35][34]. Shortly thereafter, the aides had their first contract approved.

Presidents

Samuel Wolchok (1935-1937)

Samuel Wolchok[12] was Local 338’s first president. Before joining Local 338, Wolchok was a member of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union[48], where he made suspenders. After serving in World War I, he returned to Brooklyn where he got a job at the same supermarket the founders of Local 338 also worked. Wolchok took office in 1935 and stepped down in 1937 to become president of the Retail, Wholesale, Department Store Union (RWDSU) and later served within the leadership of another national organization, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)[49] in the 1940s.

Meyer Winokur (1938-1941)

Meyer Winokur was the first elected president by the union’s Executive Board. The first Local 338 constitution was drafted under his leadership with help from the membership and former president Samuel Wolchok, who was serving as President of the RWDSU. The constitution was officially adopted in 1941. Pensions and health insurance policies were established under Winokur’s leadership as well. Membership grew significantly under his tenure, and Winokur helped pave the way towards new organizing efforts, strengthening relationship with other Local Unions, and began 338’s political involvement with the endorsement of Franklin D. Roosevelt for President.

Murray J. Kudish (1941-1946)

Murray Kudish was president during the beginning of World War II, and he encouraged members to do whatever they could to support the American military fighting overseas. Kudish established the union’s first Health and Welfare fund, which provided health benefits to the membership. His wife, Cecilia, was president of the Local 338 Women’s Auxiliary Network, which engaged women members as well as members’ wives in political affairs. Kudish pushed for a 48-hour workweek during his tenure.

Julius Sum (1947-1972)

Julius Sum was a member of Local 338 as a young man, when he worked in a dairy store in the Bronx. After many years as an active member in the union, Sum joined the Local 338 staff as a Business Agent in 1935. Sum was an advocate for political activism, and under his leadership the union became involved in early Civil Rights demonstrations. He also established the union’s dental and optical programs, as well as the retirement fund. Sum served as the Vice President of the New York State AFL-CIO[50].

Samuel Karsch (1973-1976)

Samuel Karsch was one of the original members of the union during the 1930’s, and his dedication as a Business Agent helped pave the way for him to become union president in 1973. During Karsch’s time as president, union membership grew by 400 members in one of the largest single-shop victories at the time.

Emanuel Laub (1976-1999)

Emanuel (Manny) Laub held one of the longest terms as president in the union’s history—23 years. A member of Local 338 since 1948, Laub brought a new perspective to the union through his experience working in the stores. The union became active in various charitable organizations under his leadership, including the United Cerebral Palsy Foundation[21]. In 1981, significant increases to the union’s pension and Health and Welfare funds. A champion of education, a scholarship was set up in his name after Laub passed away in 1999[51]

John R. Durso (1999-Present)

John Durso has spent 36 years on staff with Local 338. Durso, who began his career in Waldbaum’s supermarkets in 1970, worked in several of Local 338 represented stores before becoming a Business Agent in 1984. He was elected President of the union in 1999 after the passing of Emmanuel Laub. Since 2005 Durso has also served as President of the Long Island Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO[52], the fourth largest Central Labor Council in the country. He has always been an advocate for working people. Durso has significantly diversified the industries represented by Local 338 throughout his time as President.

References

  1. ↑ "Bloomberg - Local 338 RWDSU?UFCW". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2020-05-22. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  2. ↑ "Local 338: Home". local338.org. Retrieved 2020-05-19.
  3. ↑ "Trade Union", Wikipedia, 2020-05-19, retrieved 2020-05-19
  4. ↑ "Definition of LABOR UNION". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2020-05-19.
  5. ↑ "Grocery retailer". TheFreeDictionary.com. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "medical cannabis | Definition, Types, Uses, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  7. ↑ "Cannabis", Merriam Webster, 2020-05-19, retrieved 2020-05-19
  8. ↑ "Cannabis", Encyclopedia Britannica, 2020-05-19, retrieved 2020-05-19
  9. ↑ lawrencebush (2013-10-09). "October 9th: United Hebrew Trades". Jewish Currents. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  10. ↑ "October 9 The United Hebrew Trades is Founded". Daily Kos. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  11. ↑ "Teamsters Union". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Kihss, Peter (1979-01-18). "Samuel Wolcii0k, Ex‐Unionist, 82, Dies". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  13. ↑ "Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union". Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  14. ↑ www.local338.org https://www.local338.org/newsletter-archive.cfm. Retrieved 2020-05-21. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  15. ↑ "Contract Between Waldbaum's Supermarkets and Local 338 - Cornell". https://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1935&context=blscontracts. External link in |journal= (help)
  16. ↑ Gelder, Lawrence Van (1996-10-03). "Julia Waldbaum, 99, Owner Of a Chain of Supermarkets". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  17. ↑ Editors, History com. "Civil Rights Movement". HISTORY. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Union Donates Thousands of Toys to Wantagh Children's Charity". Wantagh-Seaford, NY Patch. 2011-12-23. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  19. ↑ "Food Access – The United Food & Commercial Workers International Union". Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  20. ↑ "Paid Notice: Deaths LAUB, EMANUEL". The New York Times. 1999-07-04. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "Home". United Cerebral Palsy. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  22. ↑ "Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW Annual Blood Drive that Saves Lives – LaborPress". Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  23. ↑ "December 2015 – UFCW Action". Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  24. ↑ "Stamp Out Hunger on May 11". 2019-04-30. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  25. ↑ "Letter Carriers' Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive a resounding success". National Association of Letter Carriers AFL-CIO. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  26. ↑ "New York State Medical Marijuana Program". www.health.ny.gov. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  27. ↑ "Medical cannabis", Encyclopedia Britannica, 2020-04-25, retrieved 2020-05-21
  28. ↑ CNN, Lorenzo Ferrigno and Haimy Assefa. "New York legalizes medical marijuana". CNN. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  29. ↑ McKinley, Jesse; Ferré-Sadurní, Luis (2020-01-08). "Marijuana Will Be Legalized in New York in 2020, Cuomo Vows". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  30. ↑ "Notice of Pay Rate - New York State Department of Labor". labor.ny.gov. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
  31. ↑ Am, 2012 10:02. "A&P to close 6 Long Island Waldbaum's". Newsday. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  32. ↑ "Bloomberg - The United Food and Commercial Workers Union". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2020-05-22. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 "Unions Approve Agreements with Duane Reade". Progressive Grocer. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 "Support the Mt. Vernon School Monitors - Mount Vernon School Monitors Need Your Support!". Support the Mt. Vernon School Monitors. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 "Memorandum of Agreement - Mount Vernon School District" (PDF). Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 "New union contract at Vireo OK'd | News, Sports, Jobs - Leader Herald". Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  37. ↑ "Farmworker Rights". New York Civil Liberties Union. 2017-02-14. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  38. ↑ "New York Farmworkers Get Labor Rights but Legal Battle Looms (2)". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  39. ↑ RAMIREZ), Steven Greenhouse (NYT COMPILED BY ANTHONY (2003-06-03). "Metro Briefing | New York: Queens: Workers Vote On Affiliation". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  40. ↑ Greenhouse (NYT), Steven (2006-04-14). "Metro Briefing | New York: Manhattan: New Duane Reade Contract". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  41. ↑ "Service Employees International Union". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  42. ↑ "Homepage". SEIU - Service Employees International Union. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  43. ↑ Mooney, Jake (2004-03-14). "NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT: NEW YORK UP CLOSE; In Labor Dispute, Double Takes For Union's 'Duane Reade' Bags". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  44. ↑ Marcus, Josh; Marcus, Josh (2019-06-14). "Meet America's Most Powerful Cannabis Union". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 "Compassionate Care Act" (PDF). Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  46. ↑ 46.0 46.1 Project, Marijuana Policy. "New York's Compassionate Care Act: An Overview of A.6357-E and S.7923". MPP. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  47. ↑ Mar 05, 2020. "NYC IRI Employees Win Local 338 Membership". Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  48. ↑ "International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  49. ↑ "Congress of Industrial Organizations". www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  50. ↑ "New York State AFL-CIO". New York State AFL-CIO. 2016-08-23. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  51. ↑ "Paid Notice: Deaths LAUB, EMANUEL". The New York Times. 1999-07-04. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
  52. ↑ "Welcome | LI Fed". longislandfed.org. Retrieved 2020-05-27.


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