REI, the Seattle-based outdoor gear retailer whose name is practically synonymous with camping, doesn’t want you to think it’s anti-union. Unions are fine, a great choice for some companies; they’re just not for this company. In fact, REI seems to suggest, it doesn’t even need a union, because it’s already a co-op. “We are, at our core, a cooperative,” its newly created anti-union website gushes. “You are at the heart of our co-op, and your expertise, enthusiasm, and joy in helping members get outside make us who we are.”
In January, workers at REI’s store in Manhattan’s SoHo filed for union representation with the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (the same union Amazon’s Bessemer, Alabama warehouse workers are voting to join). The employees have criticized REI for laying off long-term staff when stores reopened after pandemic closures and allege a lack of transparency on Covid safety protocols. They also say wages are unlivable and that they’ve been working for 40 hours a week without health care benefits. In an online petition, workers claim the company has responded to the union by forcing them to go to anti-union meetings, putting up anti-union posters, and enforcing a freeze on promotions.
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