Fed up with workplace favoritism, sick of low wages, and poor benefits, clerks at the MERS Goodwill store in the St. Louis suburb of Festus formed a union in 2019, joining UFCW Local 655. For over a year MERS Goodwill stalled in negotiating a first contract, and then pivoted to spreading misinformation about UFCW, spurring a decertification campaign.
The workers reached out to Missouri Jobs with Justice to highlight MERS Goodwill’s union busting. We mobilized our base, bringing our supporters to MERS Goodwill ‘s Downtown St. Louis Headquarters on December 22nd to stand with the workers. MERS Goodwill CEO David Kutchback’s sole defender seems to be Ebenezer Scrooge, who showed up to the rally himself to laud Kutchback’s selfish, Scrooge-like behavior.
Despite the continued attacks on these workers and their union, Festus Goodwill workers voted on January 11th 2021 to stick with Local 655–proving once again that solidarity works! Missouri Jobs with Justice will stand with these workers as they continue to fight for a fair contract and for the rights of all workers to organize for fairness and dignity at work.
