REI's Union Is Calling for a May Boycott. Vermont’s Only Store Isn’t on Strike — But Cuts Behind the Dispute Reach Williston.
When REI Williston opened in November 2019, the company’s announcement cited over 32,000 lifetime co-op members in Vermont and 55 new hires at the Williston store.
Vermont REI members have a decision coming. By May 1, the REI Union — the labor group representing workers at 11 of the co-op’s roughly 190 stores — will make a final call on whether to ask shoppers nationwide to skip the Anniversary Sale, REI’s largest retail event of the year. The sale runs May 15 to 25.
The 11 unionized stores are in SoHo, Berkeley, Cleveland, Chicago, Boston, Durham, Maple Grove, Bellingham, Castleton, Santa Cruz, and Greensboro. None of them are in Vermont. REI Williston, which opened Nov. 15, 2019 at Taft Corners, remains the state’s only REI store.
But not every change at the center of this dispute is confined to the union stores. One set of cuts — described by REI’s CEO in an internal memo — applies across the co-op. That set reaches Williston.
How the talks collapsed
REI and a coalition of UFCW and RWDSU locals established a national bargaining framework in July 2025 to pursue first contracts for the 11 organized stores, per the UFCW. Union membership voted on a comprehensive REI offer on Feb. 4, 2026, and rejected it by 98.5 percent. Talks resumed, then broke down.
In late February, REI declared an impasse. The union disputes the declaration and has filed claims challenging it.
Around the same time, REI CEO Mary Beth Laughton circulated an internal memo outlining cost reductions across the co-op. Reporting by Bloomberg, as recapped in GearJunkie, describes the changes: slower vacation-day accrual, replacement of guaranteed retirement contributions with a company match, a shift from a uniform sick-leave policy to one that aligns state-by-state with legal minimums, and lower starting wages for new hourly hires after July 1. According to that reporting, these changes apply company-wide.
A separate step — the unilateral implementation of the economic terms of REI’s final contract offer — applies only at the 11 unionized stores, per the REI Union’s own accounting.
The distinction matters for Vermont. The memo cuts reach REI Williston. The impasse-triggered implementation does not.
On March 25, the REI Union announced that union workers and participating co-op members had voted overwhelmingly to authorize a boycott of the Anniversary Sale if no contract is reached. Berkeley worker Sam Wirt said in the union statement that the boycott vote was not made lightly. HuffPost reported the final go/no-go decision would be made by May 1.
REI’s position
The co-op called the authorization vote disappointing in statements provided to Retail Dive, GearJunkie, and other trade outlets. REI says the company made a last, best, and final offer in January and is waiting for the union to return with a counterproposal. A spokesperson told Retail Dive that actions aimed at weakening the business carry real and lasting consequences for employees.
What’s at stake in Vermont
When REI Williston opened in November 2019, the company’s announcement cited over 32,000 lifetime co-op members in Vermont and 55 new hires at the Williston store. The membership figure would put roughly one in every 20 Vermonters in the co-op’s rolls at that time. REI has not yet provided an updated figure for this story.
Co-op membership is a $20 lifetime buy-in. Members vote in annual board elections — or can. That changed last year. In May 2025, after the REI Union directed more than 115,000 members to REI’s voting platform to reject the board’s handpicked slate, none of the three nominees received enough votes to win election. REI’s own announcement of the results noted that per the co-op’s bylaws, the three seats would remain vacant until filled by the board.
In late September 2025, the board filled them. REI named Eric Sprunk, the former chief operating officer at Nike; John Vandemore, the current chief financial officer at Skechers; and Lisa Bougie, a venture partner at Alante Capital. Each was appointed by the sitting board rather than elected by the membership. The UFCW characterized the sequence as the board changing its bylaws to permit unelected directors to serve for up to three years.
Vermont members who honor the boycott would be sitting out a sale that HuffPost describes as REI’s highest-traffic event of the year. Chittenden County has several independent outdoor retailers — Outdoor Gear Exchange on Church Street in Burlington, Skirack on Main Street, and Alpine Shop in South Burlington among them — for shoppers who want to buy local instead.
Political context
Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL) led a January 2025 letter to REI’s board urging good-faith negotiations. Budzinski’s office characterized the letter as signed by 57 lawmakers; the signature page on the document carries 63 names. No member of Vermont’s congressional delegation — Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Peter Welch, or Rep. Becca Balint — appears among the signers.
What to watch
May 1: REI Union’s final decision on whether the boycott goes forward
May 15–25: REI Anniversary Sale dates
Arbitration status: The union’s challenge to REI’s impasse declaration is pending
The union’s solidarity pledge is at ourrei.com/petition.
Editor’s note: This piece is based on union statements, REI corporate communications, and trade press reporting. Compass Vermont has sent multiple requests for comment and a follow-up is in progress.