We're taking a break here from the Why We're Socialists series to interview Michael Hines, president of UFCW 367, which represents around 8,000 grocery workers in the South Puget Sound area. Cory couldn't make it to record this episode, so it'll just be Isaac asking the questions. The interview covers a lot of ground about the state of the grocery industry during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, and how changes in the industry have affected workers. Next up after this will be an interview with Norah and Billie, two workers from the Cooper Point Starbucks in Westside Olympia who, together with their coworkers, succeeded in winning a union 19-2! We hope you enjoy this episode and we'll try to have that next episode of why we're socialists out soon.
Sources:
Food Retail: Financial Trends, Industry Challenges & Opportunities for Workers: a slideshow that was part of a presentation at the UFCW 367 leadership conference in January 2022
Hungry at the Table, a study conducted by Economic Round Table
DSA Labor: The Rank & File Strategy