Tony's Fresh Market workers kick off union voting

Workers at Tony’s Fresh Market started voting Tuesday on whether to unionize, as they demand better pay, health insurance and workplace conditions.

More than 2,000 workers at 21 Tony’s stores in Chicago and the suburbs can vote until Thursday to join Local 881 United Food and Commercial Workers. Results are expected on Friday.

Workers at Tony’s filed petitions in February to be represented by Local 881 UFCW, which represents 34,000 employees in retail, food and drug stores throughout Illinois and Northwest Indiana, including at Jewel-Osco, Kroger and Mariano’s.

The proposed bargaining unit could include about 2,400 Tony's employees. Full- and part-time clerks, assistant managers and department managers are eligible.

Local 881 cited anti-union tactics from management and harassment of workers as they organized. Workers are “being pulled into one-on-one meetings, being questioned if they are working with the union and being unlawfully told not to vote in the upcoming election,” Local 881 said in a news release last week.

It added that Tony’s spread a false rumor that the union would request immigration status documents from workers. Local 881 “will never ask for any documentation or information regarding immigration status,” according to its website.

The union also highlighted “disturbing management practices, including denial of bereavement leaves, use of fear and intimidation to control workers and bosses playing favorites to determine raises or terminations.”

Managers from Heritage Grocers, Tony’s parent company based in California, have come to Chicago to talk to workers and dissuade them from voting, said Teresa Ramirez-Gonzalez, director of organizing for Local 881.

A Tony’s spokesperson said in an emailed statement on Tuesday: “Tony’s Fresh Market values its team members and respects their right to consider union representation, and any claims suggesting otherwise are false. We take great pride in fostering a supportive environment where our team members can thrive, with competitive wages, strong benefits packages, and direct and open communication at the core of our efforts.”

Ofelia López-Salazar worked at Tony’s for five years and was most recently a clerk in the meat department at the Bridgeview store. But the mother of two was fired on Feb. 27; management did not give a reason. López-Salazar claimed she was terminated for her role as part of the workers’ organizing committee.

This month, Local 881 filed complaints with the National Labor Relations Board claiming retaliation and firings of Tony’s workers for their union activism.

López-Salazar said there were “a lot of injustices” at Tony’s, including overwork, low wages and poor treatment. Many employees stay quiet because they’re afraid of retaliation, she said. “Human resources doesn’t do anything to help,” she said.

“No employees have been fired due to their unionization efforts,” a Tony’s spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Tony’s Fresh Market complies with all applicable labor laws and regulations across its stores, and our leadership and store managers undergo regular training to ensure compliance.”

In 2022, New York private equity firm Apollo Global Management bought Tony’s. The firm also has a stake in Albertsons, whose properties include Jewel-Osco. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Tony’s is the largest independent grocery chain in Chicago by volume, according to its website. It was founded in 1979 by Italian immigrants Tony Ingraffia and Domenico Gambino, and it was the city’s first family-owned grocery chain, says the company’s website.

Maria Molina has worked at Tony’s for nine years and currently works in the floral department at the Mount Prospect store.

Molina said after Apollo took over Tony’s, her hours were cut, as well as her time off, including paid holidays and personal days. The health insurance offered by Tony’s is unaffordable, so the majority of its workers don’t have it, she said. Molina has health insurance through her husband, who does not work at Tony’s.

She added that co-founder Ingraffia asked her in person why she wanted to unionize.

A spokesperson for Tony’s declined to comment on Ingraffia’s interactions with organizing workers.

Molina said she wants to give voice to workers who don’t speak English, like her.

López-Salazar urged Tony’s workers to vote and to not be afraid. “You have a voice,” she said.