Costco workers are ready to strike.
Unionized warehouse employees affiliated with the Teamsters union have voted “overwhelmingly” in favor of going on strike, the union told Business Insider.
The vote came ahead of a January 31 contract expiration deadline. The contract covers over 18,000 workers across the United States, including the recently unionized warehouse in Norfolk, Virginia. Costco employs over 300,000 people worldwide, over 200,000 of which work in the United States.
“Costco’s greedy executives have less than two weeks to do the right thing,” Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a statement. “If they refuse, they’ll have no one to blame but themselves when our members go on strike.”
Representatives for Costco did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI on the vote. Costco CEO Ron Vachris addressed the negotiations during a quarterly earnings call in December, saying that the company is focused on a “fair and timely process” to reach an agreement.
“We have a 40-year track record of dealing fairly with the Teamsters union,” he added. “And we’re going to do everything we can to take care of those employees as we do all of our employees.”
Last week, local chapters in New York, California, and Costco’s home state of Washington held practice picket activities, carrying signs reading “Just Sampling” and “A taste of what’s to come.”
Of those who participated in the strike authorization vote, 85% voted in favor. The vote empowers the Teamsters bargaining committee to call for a strike once the contract has expired.
“We are the backbone of Costco,” Bryan Fields, a Costco worker in Baltimore and member of Teamsters Local 570, said in a statement. “We drive its success and generate its profits.”
O’Brien has pledged to win “the strongest contract in Costco’s history,” with a raft of proposals, including higher wages and expanded benefits.
Bargaining is set to resume on Monday.
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