How GrowNYC Workers Made History

Three years ago, a handful of workers started having quiet conversations in between unloading trucks and setting up stalls. They work at GrowNYC, a nonprofit organization that facilitates greenmarkets, farmstands, gardens, and educational programs across New York City to provide community-enriching services. Workers keep farmers markets running, connect communities with healthy food, and support environmental education year-round, which includes providing fresh, local food access, running community gardens and teaching spaces, and delivering sustainability and nutrition education to New Yorkers in all five boroughs. 

While passionate about their mission-driven organization, workers were tired of working in the blazing sun without shade, freezing winds without proper gear, and tired of being treated like they were replaceable. Some were seasonal workers who came back year after year but never had any guarantee they’d be rehired. Others faced harassment from customers, sometimes sexual harassment, with no clear policy to protect them. There was no fair pay for speaking another language, even though many of them translated daily for shoppers and vendors.

That’s when they reached out to the RWDSU.

Organizing in the rain, in the heat — and in between shifts

From that first meeting, it wasn’t easy. Conversations happened in parks, over coffee, and sometimes in the rain after a market closed. Management didn’t always make it simple, but workers stuck together. They won voluntary recognition in May 2023. Then came the real challenge: negotiating a first contract. 

“This contract ratification represents the culmination of three long years of organizing and negotiating. For the first time, we will have guaranteed annual raises, just cause protections, access to chairs at all sites, and bonuses for multilingual speakers, to name a few. While the struggle and advocacy efforts will continue, we hope to achieve and sustain impactful collaboration, as well as future gains. This agreement shows what’s possible when workers stand in solidarity and disrupt the status quo,” said Win-Sie Tow (She/Her), Greenmarket Site Lead and Bargaining Committee Member.

What they won

On August 14, 2025, the vote came in: the first-ever union contract for GrowNYC workers was overwhelmingly ratified. And it’s not just a win – it’s a blueprint for the industry.

Here’s what’s in it:

• Safety first: A customer code of conduct, paid recovery time after traumatic incidents, and the power to potentially bar repeat harassers.

• Weather protections: Extreme weather pay bonuses, relief seating, restroom access, and proper protective gear for all conditions.

• Job security: Recall rights for seasonal workers.

• Respect for skills: Language bonuses for bilingual workers, plus better language access for shoppers.

• Real raises: A $21/hour starting wage (going up to $22 after a year) and annual raises of 3.5% or 4.5%, depending on how long you’ve been there.

“It’s been over three-years since my coworkers and I first started organizing with the RWDSU, so to finally reach a first contract is an amazing feeling. I’m excited to see all the changes that GrowNYC will implement through this contract actually take effect, mainly when it comes to diversity, and health and safety,” said Tammy Castrillo (She/Her), Upper Manhattan & Bronx Greenmarkets Site Lead and Bargaining Committee Member. 

Bigger than one workplace

“This first union contract for GrowNYC workers is historic,” said Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). “GrowNYC workers feed our city, educate our communities, and keep New York’s beloved greenmarkets running in all kinds of weather. Their fight for a union was about safety and fairness on the job, and this contract delivers. From protections against harassment and extreme weather pay, to improved language equity and significant wage increases, they’ve set a new standard that will lift up not only GrowNYC workers, but workers across the sector.”

This is more than just a contract. It’s a signal to every market worker, every seasonal worker, every person who thinks they have to “just deal with it” – you don’t. You can organize. You can win. The greenmarkets will keep running, the teaching garden will keep teaching, and the warehouse will keep moving fresh food across the city. But now, the people doing that work will do it with the protections and respect they fought for – and won – together.