Mississippi Market workers across 3 co-op locations vote to unionize

Employees of Mississippi Market Co-op voted “overwhelmingly” this week to unionize across all three locations in St. Paul.

Grocery store workers approached management with their intent to organize with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1189 last month, but the company did not voluntarily recognize the union. Employees took a formal vote on Wednesday, and the unionization effort succeeded by an 80% margin.

“Thank you to our coworkers for going through this together with us,” union organizers wrote in a statement. “Thank you for asking questions and helping each other find the answers. Thank you for making this process respectful, engaging, and powerful. For those who voted yes, thank you for your support. For those who voted no or chose not to vote, we respect your decision and are ready to move forward together.”

Some of the main concerns employees raised during the unionization process included “unpredictable schedules, unrealistic attendance policies, and inconsistent management.”

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS has reached out to Mississippi Market for a comment and is awaiting a response.

UFCW Local 1189 says it represents more than 6,000 grocery workers in Minnesota and Wisconsin, including multiple co-op grocery stores.