Local 1459's officers, staff and membership hope the following information will introduce, describe and inform you of our Local Union and the International Union's history, structure, and functions.

We are workers helping other workers to improve wages, benefits, and working conditions, and have a true, independent voice in the workplace. Union members earn much more than comparable nonunion workers. The added pay and benefits workers receive through belonging to the union are, on average, 18 times more than the cost of union dues.

Local 1459 is one among hundreds of other Locals, spread from coast to coast, which belong to the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). Representing 1.5 million members from both the private and public sectors, the UFCW is one of the largest unions in the AFL-CIO. The UFCW has established divisions for each specialized group of members. The UFCW, considered by most experts to be one of the top collective bargaining unions, is also one of the most powerful, respected and experienced unions in the United States.

Established in 1938, Local 1459 is a progressive organization, constantly striving to represent the members' interests to the fullest extent at the workplace and in the community. The officers and staff of the Local are very involved in political and community activities within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Local 1459 is proud of the following benefits and programs it has implemented throughout the years, which are currently being enjoyed by its members. Health insurance, pension program, free legal services, a discount program with numerous valuable discounts on a wide variety of vendors from insurance, automotive care, recreational activities, legal services, to finances, discount auto and home insurance program, discount MasterCard, a retirees club, and $20,000 in scholarship programs.

Local 1459 is run by an elected Executive Board. The Executive Board is comprised of Officers who meet on a monthly basis to approve finances, accept new members, discuss local business and determine activities. These officers are full-time representatives and rank and file members who work in the various locations. The entire Executive Board meeting is recorded and the minutes are read and approved or disapproved by the general membership at regular quarterly meetings.

The daily operations of the Local Union are conducted by the President, Secretary-Treasurer, and Union Representatives. Additionally, Local 1459 has a stewards program which provides on the job assistance and advice through qualified stewards. These stewards are trained in contract enforcement and grievance handling.

The UFCW also has a democratic structure. Every five years, UFCW Locals elect delegates and send them to the International convention to elect International Officers and vote on the International Constitution.

Local 1459 representatives are trained in all phases of labor relations including membership services, labor law, legislation, and collective bargaining.

With several thousand members, Local 1459 is the largest union in Western Massachusetts.

UFCW Local 1459 is committed to organizing workers not only to bring the benefits of union membership to the unorganized but also to protect and better represent current members.

The UFCW also works with like-minded community groups-such as religious, citizen action, civil rights, senior and women's organizations-to form coalitions that strengthen our ability to protect workers' rights and organize nonunion workers.

If you are interested in organizing a union where you work, please see our organizing section for more details.

Our members work everyday under the protection of collective bargaining agreements. These bargaining agreements lay out rules and regulations agreed to by us and our employer on such things as the wages and salaries we are paid. the amount of holidays and vacation time off we enjoy, and how we go about resolving disputes or getting things smoothed out. Most of these agreements last for three or four years and represent quite a bit of security in this day and age. We usually meet to go over proposals for changes in the contracts long before the contract expires so that we can all have some say in what changes we would like to see made.

Local 1459 has specialists who monitor the workplace to see that the contract is being adhered to by the employer and to help figure out better ways to improve our standard of living and quality of life at work. Of course, because the UFCW is large and represents many workers in many different industries and occupations, we have a lot of experienced folks around who know what it takes to get the job done and represent our best interests before the employer.

UFCW Local 1459 helps workers who are not members of our union when they are being deprived of their legal rights. We have helped thousands of workers whose employers were ignoring (and sometimes thumbing their noses at) basic worker protections such as minimum wage and overtime laws, safety and health standards, pension guarantees, and anti-discrimination laws. We uncover the abuses, document them, and report them to the appropriate authorities. We have even assisted workers in taking legal action to recover their losses.