Office staff working for the Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA) recently joined UFCW Local 400 and negotiations on a first contract will begin shortly. The DPVA coordinated campaign staff, who work on electoral campaigns throughout the state, have also won union recognition and recently ratified a union contract with IBEW Local 666.
“Campaign workers and staff at the DPVA have spent years working to elect pro-worker candidates who fight for organized labor. It’s only right that we as a party live up to our values and recognize the right to join a union,” said DPVA Chair Susan Swecker. “Organizing campaign and political party staff is a new frontier for the labor movement, and we’re proud that Virginia can set an example,”
“I would first like to congratulate the coordinated campaign staff on forming a union and successfully negotiating a first contract with our brothers and sisters at IBEW,” said UFCW Local 400 President Mark Federici. “Likewise, I couldn’t be more proud of our new members among the office staff of the Democratic Party of Virginia. All workers deserve the benefits and protections of a union, and we are proud to be part of the latest development in the growing movement to organize political and campaign workers. We look forward to negotiating a strong new contract that recognizes the commitment and hard work of the office staff.”
UFCW Local 400 has been proud to welcome political and campaign workers to our union family, including the Bernie Sanders campaign staff, who were the first-ever presidential campaign staff to ratify a union contract, as well as the staff of the Lee Carter campaign, the first campaign workers to unionize in Virginia.