Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Lush Cosmetics Workers in Lexington, Kentucky, Join UFCW Local 227

[Omaha Steve]

https://aflcio.org/2024/2/6/service-solidarity-spotlight-lush-cosmetics-workers-lexington-kentucky-join-ufcw-local-227

Kenneth Quinnell February 6, 2024

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our Service & Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

Workers at the Lush store in Lexington, Kentucky, joined United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 227, becoming the second unit of Lush workers in Kentucky to join the local. The seven employees work as cosmetics sales ambassadors and floor leaders and sell vegetarian and vegan bath bombs, creams, soaps, shampoos and other products. They are concerned about insufficient wages and insufficient working conditions.

“I came to work at Lush because of what Lush stands for: ethical buying, how inclusive the products are, and how innovative they are with non-packaging and ingredients,” said Naomi Stone, who is a sales ambassador at the Lexington store. “Despite how great the company is for customers, in my three months of working here, I have noticed a large turnover in employees and I can’t see how using company resources and time to constantly hire and train new people is efficient and sustainable. A union would help create better working conditions and ensure long-lasting loyal employees, which will increase the customer experience.”

[2naSalit]

1. Nice.

I've been a LUSH customer since the mid 1990s, before they had locations in the US. The first products I had, received as a gift, came from Zagreb. All my purchases came from Canada. I love some of their products and agree with their ethics.