Fifteen UFCW 663 members secured more guaranteed hours and Union healthcare access because they held Jerry’s Foods accountable to contract staffing language.
“I spent almost four years asking to be reclassified so I could get more hours, and it never happened. I had to get a second job because my hours kept getting cut,” said Bahman, a part time grocery worker at Jerry’s Foods in Edina.
“My shop steward, Joe, and my coworkers, Winter, Asher, CJ, and Robert stood by me the whole time. Without my Union, this would not have happened. Now that I’ve been reclassified, I have more hours, healthcare, and I don’t have to worry as much about falling behind on my bills.”
All of our Union grocery contracts include minimum staffing ratio requirements of full-time, part-time, and modified part-time employees. This contract language prevents employers from relying too heavily on part-time positions and secures more full-time jobs for our members.
At Jerry’s, the biggest differences between part-time and modified part-time classifications are guaranteed minimum weekly hours and access to our Union healthcare plan. Our Data Organizer, Rebecca Chang, and Member Action Center (MAC) Representative, Paul Swanson, identified that staffing ratios at Jerry’s Foods and Jerry’s Cub Foods had fallen out of compliance.
After filing a grievance and some back and forth with the employer, Paul successfully argued that additional part-time employees should be reclassified as modified part-time. As a result, 15 members were moved into the modified part-time classification, gaining higher guaranteed weekly hours and access to the Union healthcare plan.
If you’re having an issue at work, and/or feel your contract is being broken, please contact your steward, your Union representative, or the Member Action Center at 1-800-292-4105 or mac@ufcw663.org.
