Barnes & Noble Bloomington workers win first contract

(BLOOMINGTON, IL) – On March 10, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) announced the ratification of a first union contract at the Bloomington, Illinois Barnes & Noble store. The union, which also represents three New York City Barnes & Noble Inc. stores, including the flagship in Union Square, Manhattan, raised the standard for safety, wages, and healthcare for their newest union members across the board. This announcement comes just days after the union announced the historic ratification of first union contracts for any Barnes & Noble workers in the nation at the three New York City stores, which collectively covered over 200 workers.

In addition to increased wages and the added general protections a union contract provides, workers at the Barnes & Noble’s Bloomington, Illinois store have secured the following in their new three-year agreement: 

• RWDSU Healthcare: union healthcare coverage.
• Safety equipment: Back braces, wrist guards, anti-slip mats for the Cafe area, stools for workers to sit at every information desk and cash register, and on the sales floor, booksellers and baristas will be allowed to sit to get relief when needed. 
• Safety language: that protects the workers, including a safety committee, de-escalation trainings, the ability to walk away from unsafe situations without fear of reprisal, and a clear process of banning customers who harass or behave inappropriately towards workers.
• Job Security: if the store closes and relocates elsewhere.
• Pay Security: for store emergency closing situations.
• New Trainings: annual anti-discrimination and other trainings.

Barnes & Noble locations with ratified contracts:

Bloomington, Illinois Store: 1701 E Empire St, Bloomington, IL 61704

West 82nd Street, New York Store: 2289 Broadway, New York, NY 10024

Park Slope, Brooklyn Store: 267 7th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

Union Square Flagship, New York Store: 33 E 17th St, New York, NY 10003

“It’s been a long difficult year of negotiations and while we had to make a lot of compromises on both sides, in the end our first contract is a win for our booksellers and baristas. We now have stools at the registers, locked in raises and increased rates of pay for positions for three years, and an excellent healthcare package through the RWDSU for our booksellers and baristas that we are very excited about. We hope we’ve paved the way for other stores now that several locations in the country have reached a contract agreement with Barnes & Noble,” said Zane Crockett (He/Him), Lead Bookseller at the Bloomington, Illinois Barnes & Noble store.

“Workers at Barnes & Noble should be incredibly proud of what they’ve accomplished together in these historic first union contracts from Illinois to New York. United in their fight for increased safety in their stores, it was their voices across the table that won. Now, we can finally say their longtime safety needs are codified in union contracts, which also include industry standard setting wage increases, union healthcare, and more. A union is the only way to ensure workplace protections are secure – especially now, while laws protecting workers are under attack. The Barnes and Noble unionization effort continues to spread across the country, and workers this month have shown a fair contract is not only possible, it's well within reach,” said Stuart Appelbaum (He/Him), President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).