UFCW Local 555 emerging as a political force in Oregon
By DON McINTOSH
Associate Editor
Oregon’s largest private sector union
has worked to build up its political
muscle in recent years, after years of
punching below its weight. The union,
United Food and Commercial Workers
(UFCW) Local 555, represents 19,000
workers in Oregon and Southwest
Washington, most at chain grocery
stores like Fred Meyer, Safeway, Al-
bertsons, and QFC.
Secretary-treasurer Jeff Anderson
says Local 555 used to stick to negoti-
ating and enforcing collective bargain-
ing agreements, and didn’t see politics
as central to its mission. But after his
2008 election to union leadership — on
a slate with president Dan Clay — Lo-
cal 555 worked to increase political en-
gagement in order to win through leg-
islation what it had trouble gaining in
contract bargaining.
Member donations to the Active
Ballot Club (ABC) — UFCW’s politi-
cal action committee — totaled $329 a
month when Anderson and Clay took
office. Today, Anderson says Local 555
members contribute over $30,000 a
month, all of it in voluntary contribu-
tions of as little as a $1 a week from
roughly 6,800 members. That’s on top
of a 50-cent per member per month as-
sessment that pays for political educa-
tion efforts among union members. The
surge won recognition from Local
555’s parent union as Local 555 be-
came one of its top five most politically
active locals. Cash and in-kind contri-
butions by Local 555 to Oregon politi-
cal campaigns totaled close to
$380,000 this year.
Local 555 has put its war chest to
work in distinctive ways, and has had a
string of successes.
It was the only union to back mari-
juana legalization in a big way, con-
tributing $75,000 to the successful
campaign to pass Oregon’s Ballot
Measure 91. That’s in sync with
UFCW’s national policy of support for
opening up (and unionizing) new hemp
and cannabis industries.
Though Local 555 isn’t affiliated
with the Oregon AFL-CIO, it’s active
in local AFL-CIO affiliated central la-
bor councils, and it’s big supporter of a
union-led minor political party, the
Oregon Working Families Party. The
Working Families Party’s door-to-door
canvass is a key part of Local 555’s po-
litical effort. In two hard-fought but
successful paid sick leave campaigns,
the canvass, backed by funds from Lo-
cal 555, helped mobilize public sup-
port.
For years, Local 555 had tried to ne-
gotiate “first day” sick leave into its gro-
cery contracts — which offer paid sick
leave only after workers have been out
for two days. But it was unable to wrest
that concession from giant corporations
like Kroger — in a low-profit-margin
industry with low-cost nonunion com-
petition like Walmart. So when an Au-
gust 2012 poll commissioned by Local
555 showed strong support among Port-
land voters for paid sick leave, union
leaders sensed it was possible that a
community coalition could win politi-
cally — for all workers — what Local
555’s employers had refused. Local 555
backed Charlie Hales for mayor, and
Amanda Fritz for commissioner. Both
won election in November 2012. The
following March, the Fritz-sponsored
ordinance passed unanimously, making
Portland the fourth local jurisdiction in
the United States to require paid sick
leave. Eugene passed a similar ordi-
nance in July 2014.
And in the February 2014 short ses-
sion of Oregon Legislature, Local 555
won another reform important to its
members: After many years of trying,
it got a law passed that ended criminal
penalties against cashiers for mistak-
enly selling alcohol to minors, replac-
ing it with civil fines instead.
Local 555 has pursued unconven-
tional electoral approaches, like back-
ing long-shot candidates in areas of the
state not traditionally favorable for pro-
union candidates. It’s a strategy suited
to Local 555’s geographically diverse
rank-and-file: About half of its 17,000
Oregon members are in less populous
areas of the state.
“I’m sick of being on defense,” An-
derson told the Labor Press. “I want to
take our organizations and go on of-
fense.”
This election cycle, Local 555 went
after the two most iconic tea party can-
didates for Oregon Legislature.
When conservative talk radio host
Bill Post ran for the House District 25
(Newberg/Keizer) seat vacated by Kim
Thatcher, Local 555 gave heavy sup-
port to Independent candidate Chuck
Lee. The Working Families Party can-
vassed over 17,000 doors in the district,
and Local 555 contributed $50,000 in
cash and close to $30,000 in-kind con-
tributions. In the end, Post won with
nearly 55 percent of the vote.
In House District 23 (Dallas), Local
555 defended incumbent Republican
Jim Thompson against a primary chal-
lenge from far-right conservative Mike
Nearman. After Thompson lost, Local
555 backed Democrat Wanda Davis to
the tune of $15,000. Nearman won with
close to 52 percent to 37 percent for
Davis.
“We wrestled with the tail of the
tiger,” Anderson said. “They won, but
strategically, we won, because all this
money that would have gone elsewhere
came in to defend the two Tea Party
candidates.”
Anderson said taking the fight to
new territory led anti-union funders to
spend heavily to clinch the two races.
Over $230,000 was spent to elect Post,
and just under $200,000 to elect Near-
man.
“We believe that taking our message
to the red counties, in a populist envi-
ronment, can win.”
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NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
NOVEMBER 21, 2014