GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.–Workers at a branch of Lake Michigan Credit Union have voted in favor of unionizing.
As CUToday.info reported earlier, prior to the vote the employees at the branch on South Division Avenue had said they felt underappreciated and undercompensated” and were seeking to form the union in response.
The Communications Workers of America said that staff at the LMCU branch have voted to join the union in an election overseen by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
“What we wanted was to ensure a strong relationship between our members, our colleagues, and LMCU branch leadership. Now, with a seat at the table, we are able to achieve exactly that,” Ivan Diaz, a member service representative at LMCU, said in a statement that was reported by Michigan Business. “With a union, we can work directly with upper management to address the longstanding issues that we’ve had in our branch, so that we can better serve our customers and our community.”
‘A Win for Workers’
The Committee for Better Banks, a coalition of bank employees, advocacy groups, and labor unions, issued the announcement on the election results, according to the report.
“This is not just a win for us. It’s a win for workers at other LMCU branches, banks, and financial services institutions who are looking to form a union in 2023,” Diaz said in the statement.
A majority of employees at LMCU’s South Division Avenue branch filed a petition in December with the NLRB for an election to decide whether to form a union with representation from the Communications Workers of America, according to Michigan Business.
A petition sought a union vote on behalf of 13 full-time and part-time tellers and member service representatives, according to the NLRB petition. The vote excluded supervisors, branch managers, assistant branch managers, clerical employees, professional employees, commercial loan and residential loan employees, and guards, Michigan Business added.
LMCU Responds
Officials with the $11.7-billion Lake Michigan CU called the vote “unfortunate,” the report stated.
“At LMCU, we have long been focused on providing excellent employment and career opportunities with competitive wages and benefits in a welcoming work environment, so we view this vote as unfortunate,” the credit union said in a statement to MiBiz that indicated employees voted 7-5 to join the union.
“Open communications with all LMCU team members is something we strive for and, in our opinion, outside unions have their own agenda that doesn’t necessarily benefit staff or members as promised, and oftentimes doesn’t align with what the credit union hopes is in the best interest of our valued staff,” the statement continued, according to Michigan Business. “We have shared before that we believe unions are unnecessary for LMCU to maintain the high employment standards and customer service that our team members work hard every day to deliver,” the credit union said. “Our South Division branch team members remain a valuable part of LMCU, and we look forward to their ongoing focus and support in always doing what is best for our members and their financial well-being.”
‘First of Many’
LMCU, which is the largest credit union based in Michigan has 67 branches, including 20 along Florida’s Gulf Coast. The unionization vote applies to only one branch, but a spokesperson for the Committee for Better Banks told Michigan Business staff at other LMCU branches have since reached out to inquire about unionizing.
“We’re confident LMCU South Division workers will be the first of many in the financial services industry to win a seat at the table in 2023,” the spokesperson said.
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