Foodland workers across Hawaiʻi are proving what coordinated, rank-and-file power looks like. With their contract having expired on October 31, ILWU Local 142 kicked off a major statewide mobilizing campaign to support Foodland negotiations and things are starting off incredibly strong.

On October 16, Foodland members from every island gathered in Honolulu for a full-day statewide mobilizing training. The goal was to build a coordinated campaign across 32 stores to ensure that every Foodland worker has a voice in shaping the fight for fair wages, strong benefits, and safe working conditions.

Mobilizing across multiple locations is no small task. Unlike a single-unit shop floor, Foodland workers are spread across the island chain, making visibility, communication, and momentum much harder to sustain. The statewide training was an investment to tackle that very challenge.

Members worked together to create store-by-store organizing charts designed to track participation and keep mobilizers focused as negotiations soon approach. These charts will serve as visual roadmaps, allowing every mobilizer and Business Agent to see in real time where support is strong and where deeper conversations are needed.

The first coordinated action launched immediately after the training: a two-week petition campaign urging Foodland to come to the table with proposals that honor the hard work members do every day. Foodland employees returned energized, determined to show the company that they are united and ready to fight for a fair contract.

By November 5, when Foodland member mobilizers reconvened to review their progress, the results were inspiring. This was the most successful petition action at Local 142 has seen since the mobilizing program began a year and a half ago.

Stores submitted petitions with signatures from 70% to 100% of their membership—far exceeding the typical first-round participation rate of around 30%. Many units came in at or near full participation. For a multi-store statewide unit, this level of early unity is exceptional. It reflects both the leadership of Local 142 Business Agents and the commitment of Foodland members who understand the power of standing together.

Next up in the campaign was a “button-up” action. Members chose the Friday before Thanksgiving to launch the effort, one of the busiest customer days of the year. Wearing union pins during a peak shopping period brings the campaign straight to the customers who rely on Foodland workers every day. Pin-ups are simple but powerful: they create visible solidarity in the store and help build confidence among workers, reminding them—and management—that unity is their greatest leverage at the bargaining table.

A notable addition to this round of mobilizing was the participation of Kanoa Ramos, Unit Chair at Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, who was invited to help facilitate the October 16 training. Although her background is in tourism rather than general trades, Ramos has proven herself to be a skilled organizer and a strong rank-and-file leader in her own workplace.

That experience translated naturally to the Foodland members. Her ability to connect with members, make them feel seen, and motivate them to take ownership in the campaign demonstrated that the Local’s mobilizing program is designed to identify, develop, and elevate worker-leaders from across industries.

Ramos’s contribution was a promising example of the cross-unit solidarity and leadership development that Local 142 is committed to building statewide. Mobilizing is not as much about industry specifics as it is about learning how to talk story with members, understand their concerns, and bring them into a fight that belongs to all of us.

Negotiations with Foodland are only just beginning, and there is still much work ahead. But the foundation is strong. Foodland workers have already shown that they are organized, energized, and ready to fight for what they deserve.
To our many ILWU members who shop at Foodland: take a moment the next time you pick up groceries to talk with your fellow member. Ask them how things are going. Let them know you stand with them. The strength of this union has always come from workers supporting one another—and together, we will win a contract worthy of the people who keep Foodland running every day.