Nov. 30, 2017 – Fifty-two staffers of the National Fast Food Workers’ Union (NFFWU) have joined The NewsGuild-CWA. They were organized by the United Media Guild local, which will represent them.
The NFFWU is the successor to several regional “Fight for 15” groups, the movement of underpaid workers that advocates for a $15 minimum wage. The NFFWU is an affiliate of the SEIU (Service Employees International Union).
“We’re proud to have these righteous fighters as members,” said NewsGuild President Bernie Lunzer.
The NFFWU staffers’ affiliation with the Guild was certified through a procedure known as “card check,” where a neutral party, St. Louis Rabbi Susan Talve, confirmed the union had secured authorization cards from a majority of workers. Forty-seven of the 52 eligible workers signed cards declaring their support for the union.
The United Media Guild (UMG) local has represented “Fight for 15” organizers since the early days of the movement. “The activists we’ve represented have worked the front lines of that battle,” the local website says.
As a result of the successful campaign, the local now represents organizers coast-to-coast in the national campaign for fast food workers. UMG Business Representative Shannon Duffy led the organizing effort. Earlier this month, he and NewsGuild-CWA Organizer Melinda Fiedler met with NFFWU staffers in Washington DC and collected signed union cards from most of them. The UMG also represents two other social justice groups – Missouri Jobs With Justice and the Workers Interfaith Network of Memphis.
Representation for the Guild’s newest members will begin with negotiations with the NFFWU for an initial collective bargaining agreement.
Welcome aboard, sisters and brothers!