Greenleaf bosses fold, meet union demands in Portsmouth

In an unqualified victory or labor rights, United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local Union 328, representing 11,000 Rhode Island and Massachusetts workers, today announced a victory for Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center employees in Portsmouth, Rhode Island after the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) completed their investigation.

UFCW Local 328 had filed charges with the NLRB against Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center for violating workers’ rights, including the termination of employee and bargaining committee member Ben Telford, the elimination of employee discounts during a 6-week period, the elimination of the Friday lunch program, and transfer of bargaining unit work to a new classification. Additional charges included interrogation, surveillance and disparagement of employees for their union activity. After an investigation, the NLRB issued complaints on each of these charges against Greenleaf.

Just a day before the trial was set to take place, Greenleaf offered to settle on every complaint.

The agreed to settlement includes:

• Back pay for employees during a six-week period the company did not extend their employee discount to eligible union voters;
• Back pay for employees affected by the company’s elimination of the Friday lunch program for the past 25 weeks;
• The immediate reinstatement of the Friday lunch program;
• The offer of reinstatement to employee Ben Telford, who was illegally terminated by the company in June, with compensation of full back pay for wages, interest and additional compensation;
• The immediate restoration and protection of bargaining unit work for keyholders; and,
• A signed commitment by the company to not interfere with employees’ rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act, to not disparage, surveil, discipline or discharge workers for their union activity, to not create new positions to avoid collective-bargaining obligations, to not transfer work to managers or other employees because of their union activity, and a commitment to bargain in good faith with UFCW Local 328.

Read more: https://upriseri.com/greenleaf-bosses-fold/