Union Busting

WASHINGTON -- More than a year after its initial election victory at a Guitar Center store, the union representing the chain's first unionized employees is accusing the retailer of bargaining in "bad faith" and trying to purge the union.

The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union has filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that Guitar Center has stalled in bargaining talks and "punished" workers who voted in favor of representation. Last year, RWDSU won elections at three Guitar Center stores, although those workers have yet to reach a collective bargaining contract with the company.

On Tuesday, Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO labor federation, accused Guitar Center ownership of using "shameful" tactics to avoid a contract with the unionized workers.

The fight against Bain Capital and Ares Management for fair pay and decent health care for the Guitar Center workers is what the labor movement is all about," Trumka said at RWDSU's convention in Orlando, Florida.

"The dirty tactics of Bain and Ares have been shameful and ugly. I want every Guitar Center worker to know the entire AFL-CIO and every one of our affiliates stands behind them in their efforts to win a fair contract."

Bain Capital, Mitt Romney's old investment firm, held a controlling stake in the music equipment retailer until April, when it completed a deal handing the reins over to the private equity firm Ares Management.

In an email, Guitar Center spokesman Christopher Bennett called the union's claims "baseless," noting that one worker recently withdrew his charge of an unfair labor practice.

"The RWDSU's continued insistence on filing bogus charges against us and spreading misinformation to our associates and in the media is disappointing and a waste of everyone's time," Bennett said. "For more than a year we have respected the bargaining process and the law in dealing with the union."