Wells Fargo workers at Connecticut branch reject union

• Key insight: The failed effort to unionize a Wells Fargo branch in Wallingford, Connecticut, comes one month after six workers at the branch listed their grievances in a letter to CEO Charlie Scharf.
• Supporting data: Union organizers have notched wins in elections at 28 Wells Fargo branches nationwide. Following the Connecticut vote, the bank has beaten back unionization pushes at three branches.
• Forward look: Bargaining talks are under way at 21 Wells Fargo branches, with negotiations at a 22nd branch scheduled to begin next month.

Wells Fargo employees at a branch in Connecticut have voted against forming a union — a win for the megabank amid a slew of branch-level elections that have gone in favor of union organizers.

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In December, six workers at Wells Fargo’s North Colony branch in Wallingford, Connecticut, sent a letter to CEO Charlie Scharf, informing him of the timing of the election, and expressing concern over what they characterized as understaffing and a lack of compensation.

But when the vote was held on Jan. 7, the tally was 6-2 against unionization, according to the National Labor Relations Board.

“We’re pleased with the outcome of the election,” a Wells spokesperson said in an email. “We believe that the decision by employees at our North Colony branch reflects their trust in our continued commitment to fostering a workplace where employees feel supported and valued.”

Union organizers provided a statement from Max Saldanha, an associate personal banker at Wells Fargo who worked to organize the North Colony branch.

“While the results are disappointing, it is without a doubt that Wells Fargo workers are continuing to organize for a better workplace at one of the nation’s largest banks,” Saldanha said in the written statement. “Alongside nearly 30 organized branches across the country representing over 160 workers, we will continue to fight for better pay, better benefits, and a culture of dignity and respect.”

The Connecticut election is the third instance of Wells Fargo branch workers voting against unionization. The two previous “no” votes happened at branches in Belleview, Florida, and Atwater, California. Union organizers subsequently filed an unfair labor practices charge in connection with the Atwater election.

Since late 2023, union organizers have notched victories in elections at 28 Wells Fargo branches nationwide, though a unionized branch in New Jersey was subsequently closed. The company has more than 4,000 branches altogether.

One nonbanch unit at the bank has also voted to unionize.

So far, none of the bargaining units have reached a contract with Wells Fargo, and the process has been marked by acrimony.

Union officials have filed more than 35 unfair labor practice charges against the bank. The allegations of bad behavior, which Wells has denied, range from the surreptitious use of virtual meeting software to laying off employees who were involved in union organizing.

Wells has said that it respects the right of its employees to unionize, but believes they are best served by working directly with the company’s leadership.

Contract negotiations are now under way at 21 Wells branches, and the bank says talks at an additional location are scheduled to start next month. Wells said that its representatives have spent more than 90 days at the bargaining table to reach acceptable terms for its employees.

Both sides of the talks have focused much of their efforts on a branch in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which in December 2023 became the first Wells branch to vote in favor of a union. Union organizers have designated the Albuquerque bargaining unit as their national lead.

The 90 days that the bank has spent at the bargaining table are spread across more than 20 branches, noted Nick Weiner, an organizer at the union-backed Committee for Better Banks, which is leading the unionization push at Wells Fargo.

“We regret that Wells Fargo continues to insist that we bargain each branch separately,” Weiner told American Banker, adding that the bank’s decentralized approach is dragging out the process.

“We are making progress, and our bargaining teams are energized to get to a first contract. And we think we can get there, but Wells Fargo isn’t making it easy, and that’s why we think bargaining a national contract makes the most sense,” Weiner said. “And that’s what the workers want.”

In response to the argument that Wells Fargo should bargain a national contract, Wells spokesperson Tim Wetzel noted that each of the more than two dozen unionized Wells branches was organized separately.

“So we’re just following NLRB process,” Wetzel said.