On Friday, November 1, employees at a Las Vegas Guitar Center store voted 15 to 5 in favor of unionization.  If the federal labor board ratifies the election, this would represent the third GC location to go union in 2013. As previously reported in MMR, stores in Manhattan and Chicago have already successfully unionized, while bids to join the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU) in Brooklyn and Queens earlier this year were unsuccessful.

Reached for comment on Monday, November 4, Guitar Center’s vice president of Communications & Corporate Affairs, Christopher Ian Bennett, said: “The truth is that the vote still has to go through the board for ratification. It would be premature for Guitar Center or the Union to comment in detail at this point… It's an employee's right to vote however they like.  I will say that we're aiming to foster a great relationship with our associates and to provide a rewarding workplace environment and we don't think it takes a third party to achieve that. We won't be disputing or challenging whatever decisions are reached.” 

For more on the RWDSU, Bain, perceived debt, expansion, and all things GC-related, read MMR’s November coverstory: https://mmrmagazine.com/87-current-issue/special-report/684-guitar-center-inside-the-big-box.html

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