A Wells Fargo branch in Wallingford, Connecticut, voted against unionizing Wednesday, making it the third location to do so amid the banking sector’s only unionization push.
Workers at the North Colony branch, in a 6-2 vote, opted against joining the Communication Workers of America after filing for union election in December.
“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,” said Max Saldanha, a North Colony branch associate personal banker and member of Wells Fargo Workers United, the CWA organization responsible for union efforts at the bank.
“I am proud to be a part of the movement that’s fighting to make Wells Fargo a better place for both its workers and customers,” Saldanha said in a statement to Banking Dive.
A Wells spokesperson said the bank was “pleased” at the election’s outcome.
“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,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
Thirty-one of Wells’ 4,000-some branches have filed for union election since 2023, and 27 of those branches – plus the bank’s conduct management intake department – have voted in favor of unionizing. The North Colony branch joins branches in Atwater, California, and Belleview, Florida in voting against the move.
A branch in Bethel, Alaska, filed for election in December 2023 but withdrew the filing before an election was held.
WFWU launched unionization efforts in 2021, with workers expressing woes about both understaffing and compensation. Its campaign is the only major unionization effort in the banking industry today. Some workers, and then 15 senators, have accused the bank of union busting. Only one bank in the U.S. has ratified a union contract in the last 40-plus years: Oakland, California-based Beneficial State Bank.
In response to workers’ understaffing and compensation concerns, a Wells spokesperson told Banking Dive in December that the bank has reduced the time it takes to hire new branch employees by 25% since 2024, and has increased teller pay by 42% since 2019.
Initial contract negotiations for a Wells branch in Albuquerque, New Mexico – the first branch to hold a union election in 2023 – began in November 2024. Negotiations are underway at 21 branches, with another location set to begin in February, a spokesperson said.
Union and bank representatives have spent more than 90 days at the bargaining table thus far, including 30 days at the Albuquerque branch alone. No location has ratified a contract yet.
