LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Employees at a Louisville store that has been around for more than four decades are trying to unionize.
Rainbow Blossom Natural Food Markets opened its flagship store in 1977. Plenty has changed since then, like cost of living, so employees want their paychecks to reflect it.
Taylor Healy is an assistant produce manager at Rainbow Blossom in St. Matthews. She and several employees said they can't earn a fair living with what they are being paid.
"We talked, and we were like 'we are going to unionize,'" Healy said. "We are going to actually get together and do this."
Healy said she and her coworkers are still making $12 an hour after working there for years.
"The raises that we do get, they tend to run 15 to 25 cents," Healy said. "It is not keeping up with the cost of living at all."
Rainbow Blossom has five locations throughout the Louisville area and employs about 100 people. Its location on Bardstown Road was the first to step up and create an election.
"The employees came to me a couple months ago wanting to start a union because they love their jobs, they love their customers and they want to stay at Rainbow Blossom for a really long time," said Caitlyn Blair, spokesperson for United Food and Commercial Workers Local 277.
Blair said the employees deserve a change.
"It's wages, it's benefits, it's working conditions, it's respect, it's communication, it's transparency," Blair said.
Employees at Rainbow Blossom are looking for fair pay.
"It is really hard for these small companies to just up and give everyone raises," Healy said. "We are not asking for like $20 or $25 an hour, just something sustainable."
Rainbow Blossom said in a statement to WDRB News, "Rainbow Blossom has been a local independent family business for 46 years, and we couldn't have survived this long without our amazing team. We are a great place to work and treat our employees fairly. Our turnover rate is very low compared to the industry average and we have many employees who have been with us for over 5, 10, and 20 years, which is rare for retail. We highly value employee feedback and have always addressed employee concerns. The decision on whether to unionize is ultimately up to our employees, and we hope that they will educate themselves about the changes that unionization could bring."
The company is the latest in the local businesses that are demanding work-place change.
"That is not just the case at Rainbow Blossom," Blair said. "That was the case at Heine Brothers, it's the case at Lush. It's the case at Half-Price Books. All of those companies in this area have unionized last year."
Thus far, the location
"We work hard, we're here every day, we break our backs for this company," Healy said. "We deserved to be compensated for the work that we do."
Thus far, the location on Bardstown Road and Lexington Road have had any movement when it comes to unionizing. Further discussions will take place Oct. 24.
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