When Patricia Jacobs, steward at Albertsons 6548 in Ontario, makes a fashion statement, she also makes a statement about her union.
“Outside of work and taking care of my brother, I don’t have a lot of spare time,” Jacobs said. “Sometimes, though, to relax, I like to take long drives through the mountains.”
“I’ve always felt positive about the union and wear my steward T-shirt just about every other day,” Jacobs said.
“I’m proud to let everyone in our store know that I am a union member and a steward.”
Jacobs said most of her duties as a steward involve educating members and helping them with problems.
“My goal is to tell members what the union does for us, especially when I hear someone make inaccurate, negative comments,” she said.
Jacobs noted that almost all issues that come to her attention can be settled at the store level.
“Not every problem requires filing a grievance or even calling our union representative,” she said. “Things like scheduling issues or not getting guaranteed hours can be worked out with the manager.”
Jacobs knows the importance of having hours guaranteed each week.
“It’s one of the major benefits of our union contract,” Jacobs said. “Too many of our members take it for granted.
“My sister worked at a non-union store and the people there often got only eight hours a week because they didn’t have a guarantee. You can’t live on that.”
Jacobs also knows the value of her health benefits.
“Eleven years ago, I gave birth to a child with a major heart defect,” she said. “She lived only 34 days and never came home from the hospital. The bill was more than $700,000, but because of our benefits I didn’t have to pay a penny.
“It’s easy to take that for granted, but I know a friend who works non-union and she pays $300 a month to cover herself and her son.”
She added: “We have those great benefits only because we are in a union.”
Jacobs is the primary caregiver for her 23-year-old brother who lives with her and suffers from neurofibromatosis, commonly known as Elephant Man’s disease.
UFCW National News
