I have an ethical/tactical/union question in everyday life that I was hoping someone could help me clear up.
A new store has opened up in my neighborhood, a small gourmet supermarket called the Garden of Eden. Afaict, they've been in business 14 years, and this is their 5th store, all in New York City. So they are neither a Mom and Pop operation nor a megacorp.
3 days after they opened, the United Food and Commercial Workers turned up outside picketing. But -- and this is the part where I'm confused -- the workers in this store are not on strike. There hasn't even been any serious effort to organize them. (There couldn't have been in 3 days, especially the initial 3 days, and interviews with workers confirm this. They say they were hastily handed cards w/o any explanation.)
So something about this doesn't seem right. It seems to clearly violate the principle of never boycotting workers unless they ask for it. The workers involved aren't in any way scabs, because like I said, no effort was made to unionize them and there is no strike. And this boycott, by hurting them directly the day after they got their jobs, seems to be infuriating them and making them never want to join the union on principle. (The gist of the union literature is that people should shun this store and shop at D'Agastino's (another gourmet supermarket) up the street instead. D'Agastino's management included coupons for $5 off the first few days.)
At least at first sight, this rubs me the wrong way. It seems to be asking me to hurt workers who haven't done anything wrong. It just doesn't seem right.
Is there something crucial that I'm missing? Is this a common tactic? Has it worked in the past in the sense that the boycotted store ends up getting a union? Is this how D'Agastino's and Fairway and Gristede's got unions?
Anything thoughts or URLs that would help me sort this out would be appreciated.
Michael