Support Woodman’s workers – sign their petition and help them stand up for their right to remain unionized. Early in May, Woodman’s management withdrew recognition of the workers’ union, UFCW Local 1473, which represents workers at stores in Madison, Janesville and Beloit after relentlessly threatening, harassing and bribing workers until they signed papers to decertify the union.
To be honest, I’m more than a little disappointed in the anti-union stance Phil Woodman has taken towards his workers – workers without whom he wouldn’t be a rich man. I’ve long admired Woodman’s as a well-managed, employee-owned company, and I was glad to see one open in Oak Creek, but this recent development gives me pause on whether or not I really want to support enriching a man who’s taken an anti-union business stance.
I don’t get it. It’s employee owned, but the employees can’t keep it unionized if that is their desire? Something doesn’t make sense.
capper, here’s an article that explains it:
I was by there today, saw about four picketers on a Sunday afternoon. It makes me wonder if this issue is not such a big deal to the employees.
And it was pretty difficult to understand why they were picketing. Their signs just said “Woodmans is unfair”, which could have meant anything. No specific message. I asked my father who is a Teamster (as I once was, too) if he knew if these were just people who didn’t like Woodman’s and thought other people shouldn’t shop there. He works nearby, and had no idea, either.
OK, Zach, so it seems that the “employee owned” claim may be technically true, it’s really nothing more than a marketing gimmick.
I wouldn’t be shopping there anyway, since it’s too far from where I live. Any savings from shopping there (which doesn’t appear to be much, judging from their ads) would be lost in gas prices.
But it’s good to know in case they choose to expand.
Woodman’s has unbeatable prices and a huge selection. No store I’ve ever been in can compare with them. They are wonderful for the consumer. Who knows what they are paid, what their benefits are, and what the union would do for them…other than protect deadbeats. Unions are not good if the company is not abusing the workers in my opinion.
So union workers are deadbeats, gato?
The better question would be does gato only attack unions, or does he also attack greedy corporations?
Is the union going to help them if Doyle raises taxes and the company can not even afford to be in Wisconsin? I ask you this
Jessi, what does Jim Doyle have to do with a discussion about Woodman’s?
Further, I can cite a number of examples of businesses moving to Wisconsin, so things can’t be all that bad…
Remember, Zach, Wisconsin is BAD for business, mmmkay? ‘specially businesses that have to deal with unions. Just look at what happened to GM!
(Which had very little to do with UAW, that bunch of lazy ne’er do-goods, and much more to do with GM’s bad model of building huge trucks and SUVs that get horrible mileage, and doing so to the exclusion of smaller albeit (less profitable) vehicles. But that can be overlooked in the interests of Democrat/union bashing.)
employee owned ? then answer who is John Adams? it says according to the NLRB web site under statement of facts that John Adams is Phil Woodman’s son. Beware of this Appleton Woodman employees before you vote on your contract on Thursday April 9 2009
married my boss at woodmans we are now getting divorced and i have been forced off of her shift an into a checker job. was told i can NEVER again bid on a third shift job, hows that for messed up
woodmans is employee owned but it most DEFINATELY is not employee operated. employees have squat to say in the day to day operation. we do have a ridiculous little suggestion box which keeps people from bothering john adams. very few suggestions tend to go anywhere accept the garbage.