Employees at this Bellingham retail business forming a union. Here are the details

It appears workers at a Bellingham retail store have decided to form a union, continuing a trend in retail that is happening locally.

Employees at the West Marine store in Bellingham informed management on Tuesday, Sept. 13 that they have unionized with the Industrial Workers of the World, also known as the IWW. According to a news release, the new union will be affiliated with the IWW’s Whatcom-Skagit general membership branch.

The store, which sells boat and fishing equipment, is at 3560 Meridian St., near the Bellingham Golf and Country Club.

While West Marine’s management was informed of the union, it did not immediately formally recognize the union, said Dave Tucker, treasurer and media spokesman for the IWW Whatcom-Skagit branch.

Tucker said employees of West Marine approached the IWW to unionize, saying they wanted more say in areas like working conditions. This is the first IWW retail union shop in Whatcom County in a century. Tucker said the West Marine store has five employees.

In an email, Paulee Day, chief legal and human resources officer at West Marine, said the company respects the rights of employees to choose to be represented by a labor union. However, Day said they’ve only heard from two employees at the store and won’t recognize the union at this time.

“Instead, we believe all employees have the right to express their views in a secret ballot election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board. Secret ballot elections are, of course, the bedrock of all democratic elections and ensure that one’s individual decisions are free of any potential coercion or pressure. We will be informing the IWW of such,” Day said.

The new union will apply for official union shop cards from the IWW General Administration in Chicago and then determine next steps toward formal recognition, according to the news release. The union may request a National Labor Relations Board election. As a union, members will also decide whether they wish to negotiate a contract or practice the IWW’s “solidarity unionism” that focuses directly on issues as they arise in the workplace.

Other retail union efforts are also happening in Bellingham. Earlier this year two Starbucks stores in Bellingham formed unions and staged a one-day strike in August as they seek to start contract negotiations with the company.