Workers at a Whole Foods Market in Philadelphia voted to form a union, the first time employees of the Amazon-owned grocer have organized in decades. Monday’s vote, which passed 130-100, was prompted by workers’ push for higher wages and improved benefits.

The union win, at a Philadelphia store where workers are seeking higher wages, comes as Amazon is also fighting organizing efforts among some warehouse employees and delivery drivers.

Whole Foods workers at the Spring Garden store have expressed frustration about low pay and want better health-care benefits.

Now, a battle lies ahead when working out the first contract between Whole Foods and the unionized workers. "This is going to be the longest uphill battle of our lives, but this is not just for us. This is for the people who come behind us and for the people who have been here," said Khy Adams, a Whole Foods employee.

Whole Foods said it was "disappointed" by the vote but "committed to maintaining a positive working environment"

Workers at a Whole Foods Market in Pennsylvania voted to unionize on Monday, becoming the first group of employees to pull off a labor win at the Amazon-owned grocery store chain.

The union's election win, which workers called "historic," tees up another organizing battle inside Amazon's workforce.

The unionization vote comes despite a “barrage of union-busting techniques, intimidation, threats, coercion” and wrongful firings, UFCW Local 1776 President Wendell Young IV said in an interview.

(THE CONVERSATION) Whole Foods workers at the Philadelphia flagship store in the city’s Art Museum area voted to unionize on Jan. 27, 2025. They are the first store in the Amazon-owned grocery chain to do so.

Subscribe today to gain access to every Research Intelligencer article we publish as well as the exclusive daily newsletter, full access to The MediaPost Cases, first-look research and daily insights from Joe Mandese, Editor in Chief. If you're already a paid subscriber, please sign-in.

Whole Foods workers at the Philadelphia flagship store in the city's Art Museum area voted to unionize on Jan. 27, 2025. They are the first store in