Union Dues

All About Dues

Unions Aren’t Free and Dues Add Up

According to federal union filings, UFCW Local 3000 dues can range between $288 - $1,080 per year, and can go up.

Union representatives may say that dues are only a small percentage of your earnings, but this is misleading; dues can add up quickly overtime. According to UFCW Local 3000’s most recent financial reports, represented employees could pay between $864 and up to $3,240 in dues over the course of a typical 3-year contract, depending on their wage.

Understanding How Unions Spend Dues Money

First, Mud Bay would not receive any of the dues paid by union members. Not one cent.

Spending by unions is publicly available via the Office of Labor-Management Standards, part of the U.S. Department of Labor.

Financial reports show that unions like UFCW operate as a business funded primarily through dues paid by members. This is one reason why unions are often referred to as a third-party. They act as an added representative in the relationship between an employer and employees for a fee in the form of dues payments.

UFCW Local 3000

spends less than a third of its revenue on representation

even with a total revenue of $57 million. In 2024–2025, UFCW 3000 collected just over $35 million in member dues, according to its financial reports on file.

UFCW National

only spent 23% of that money on representing their members

despite collecting just over $215 million from their nearly 1.2 million members nationwide. Instead, according to their own records, UFCW spent that money on union administration, lavish activities including a $50,000 picnic at Silverwood Theme Park, political activities and lobbying, and general overhead.

Follow the Money:
What Your Union Dues Would Fund

UFCW Dues Revenue and Spending for 2025

UFCW Local 3000¹

Total Revenues

$57,484,309

Spending

$59,160,081

Representational Activities

$19,132,399

Political Activities and Lobbying

$1,067,841

Contributions, Gifts, and Grants

$536,568

Union Administration

$2,439,159

General Overhead

$889,386

Total Payroll

$11,314,693

Strike Benefits

UFCW National²

Total Revenues

$352,191,040

Spending

$368,815,454

Representational Activities

$50,296,376

Political Activities and Lobbying

$8,688,218

Contributions, Gifts, and Grants

$1,317,680

Union Administration

$8,447,732

General Overhead

$26,702,271

Total Payroll

$28,240,782

Strike Benefits

$1,561,739

United Food and Commercial Workers Local 3000. Labor Organization Annual Report: Form LM-2. Report No. 543-341, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards, 2025, https://olmsapps.dol.gov/query/orgReport.do?rptId=939918&rptForm=LM2Form
United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). Labor Organization Annual Report: Form LM-2. Report No. 937826, U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards, 2025, https://olmsapps.dol.gov/query/orgReport.do?rptId=937826&rptForm=LM2Form.

For a more detailed view of UFCW’s local and national, check out the union’s LM-2 forms

UFCW Local 3000 LM-2

UFCW National LM-2