This is what joining a union means to Tri-Cities’ Fred Meyer employees

I have lived in Richland my whole life. I started working for Fred Meyer in 2020. It was supposed to be a summer job while I was in school. I liked it so much, I’m still there.

This year, I shifted from fulfilling online orders to working in the meat department. I am the only female in the department, and most of my co-workers have been great. But when there are issues, my co-workers and I want to have a process for addressing problems that feels fair and objective, and helps resolve conflicts in a timely manner.

There are more than 250 of us in Richland working at Fred Meyer. This past year, a lot of us were getting fed up with the way the store has been managing workers.

After the store shooting in February, we didn’t think enough had been done to invest in security, employee training, and other measures to create a safe workplace. Not only did we feel unsafe, we also wanted management to step up and address other issues that were negatively impacting our health and well being.

So we banded together and joined a union, UFCW 3000. Now, for the time ever, we are celebrating an agreement with Kroger. This is a big step in the right direction to achieving real safety for workers and customers, and a pathway to improving access to healthcare, and to livable wages.

Not only in Richland, but all across the country, workplace shortages are common. Studies show a lack of supportive environment and burnout can really drive workers to leave their jobs. It’s also common sense, when workers are proud of their workplace, the company will have an easier time attracting and keeping the best people. When workers are treated with dignity and respect, our whole community is better off.

Fred Meyer workers show up for our customers. We live in a tight knit community, and our customers show up for us too by asking us about how it’s going.

Today all of us, workers, customers, and management, can celebrate this big step toward creating a safe and healthy community. We’re proud to work with management to make the Richland Fred Meyer a great place to work, and shop.