Staff at a Bookmans location in Tucson, Ariz., have voted to unionize, News 4 Tucson reported.
The union election took place Tuesday, with 49 employees at the 6230 E. Speedway Blvd. store casting votes. They intend to join the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. Workers at the store, which sells used books along with other media, said organization efforts were spurred in part by abrupt layoffs earlier this year that impacted the Bookmans marketing team.
Kai Parmenter, a book buyer at the store, told News 4: "I wanted to unionize our store for better pay and benefits, but also because we feel undervalued. Our subject matter expertise and relationships with customers is what makes Bookmans thrive. We deserve to be treated like it. Now that we have a union, we finally have a voice to make things better."
According to News 4 Tucson, this is the first time a bookstore in Arizona has unionized.