(GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA) – The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) has announced Workers employed at Reconsidered Goods in Greensboro, North Carolina have voted unanimously to Unionize.

This now becomes the second retail store in the area in a month to join the RWDSU, which will represent 17 Workers who are employed as full- and regular part-time Register Associates, Sales Associates, Senior Sales Associates, Sales Team Leads, Warehouse Team Leads, Flex/Special Project Employees, Jewelry Associates, Warehouse Associates, Fabric Assistants, Fabric Specialists, E-Com/E-Commerce/eBay Associates, Merchandisers, Volunteer Coordinators, and Education and Community Outreach Associates.

Workers at the thrift store faced an uphill battle to get to their Union vote when the company tried to exclude two Workers from the Unit.

Last month, Workers went on Strike over the issue and won in less than 24 hours, with the company agreeing to let all eligible Workers vote in the Union Election.

Workers at Reconsidered Goods first began organizing their Union around a shared investment in the non-profit’s work, while recognizing their workplace concerns were not being heard without a seat at the table, Union Officials said.

For a while, Workers have felt severely overworked and deeply undervalued by the non-profit, whose mission and vision they work to move forward every day.

In their first Union contract, Workers will seek to address a litany of problems which have often gone unaddressed - problems which undermine everything good that they value about the store, its culture, and their positions at the store - the same positions the company challenged in the Bargaining Unit.

Workers face safety issues both physically in store and from the public they interact with every day, have concerns about working in extreme temperatures, as well as wages and scheduling changes, among other issues they feel management has been slow or failed to respond to.

With a Union, Workers will now have a voice and a seat at the table to begin addressing these concerns.

Once a Union contract is ratified and in place, changes will be implemented.

E-Commerce Associated Tate Halvorsen said: “Though we were hoping Reconsidered Goods would offer us voluntary recognition, we were never in any doubt that we would form our Union. Everyone I work with has been a part of this organizing (effort) and our community has been incredibly generous to support us as well. As we head into contract negotiations, our focus is to work together so we can finally make the changes our non-profit needs. We're going to make sure Reconsidered Goods can fulfill its mission in a safe, collaborative and sustainable way.”

The RWDSU represents 100,000 Workers nationwide, including Workers at the nearby REI Greensboro, who won their election on January 24th (2025).

To Read This Organizing Labor News Story In Its Entirety, Go To: RECONSIDERED GOODS THRIFT STORE WORKERS VOTE UNANIMOUSLY TO JOIN THE RETAIL, WHOLESALE AND DEPARTMENT STORE UNION — Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU)

Photo Courtesy Of The National AFL-CIO.