Retail Workers Council in Portland wins Solidarity between New Seasons Union and Starbucks Union.

12/7/2024

On December 5th, New Seasons workers convened to pass a resolution that will guide the union’s general activities. This resolution commits to take solidarity strike action with Starbucks workers should they go on strike during the holidays. The decision to approve the resolution faced no opposition amongst membership with a unanimous vote. This unanimous solidarity vote is an opposition to the general trend of business unions today which consolidate their organizing work to a single industry, craft, or enterprise. These union models divide workers to weaken their power, and after the division the bosses disarm workers with poor contracts conceding worker freedoms through no-strike clauses and management rights clauses.

An excerpt from the resolution read:

“In the event SBWU goes on strike this Holiday season, NSLU will put out a public statement in solidarity and encourage members to support SBWU actions

NSLU will open all trainings and contract action team meetings to verified SBWU members 

NSLU will donate surplus strike supplies like leftover food to striking SBWU members 

In the event both NSLU and SBWU go on strike this holiday season, NSLU will strive to coordinate strike times in order to maximize visibility of both actions and practice our ability to show cross-union solidarity.”

This proposal to the resolution did not come about by union business as usual. A worker’s council in Portland, Oregon convened for the defense and progressive direction of a number of local independent unions. New Seasons, Fred Meyer, Starbucks, Home Depot and Safeway workers discussed the need for worker leadership and class solidarity between job sectors to effectively combat the bosses. From these conversations, worker leaders came to an action plan to have solidarity in New Seasons and Starbucks strike plans. This victory for the worker council shows that rank and file leadership can organize a practical defense of its interests with cross union, worker led conventions.

Solidarity strikes are a basic quality to a combative labor movement. Without solidarity between unions, we are divided as a class and lose combativity as a result. Solidarity action in unions today serves to create relationships between unions that result in a common recognition of class interests, and an amalgamation of forces against the bosses. 

New Seasons and Starbucks workers have potential to lead by example and bridge the division of labor by uniting class interests further in their unionization struggle. While these companies may not fill key sectors of the supply chain, strong organizing in these small shop union campaigns can inspire organizing in more tough to unionize sectors. 

With New Seasons and Starbucks Workers joining forces, it will be important for workers to maintain solidarity relations, fend off the bosses attacks, and escalate the struggle for a broad class union. The way forward for independent unions is not to be mistaken for short-term mutual aid and occasionally team ups during contract campaigns, but to win permanent, broad working relations towards class unionism as the strongest defense workers have against the capitalist class.