Queens’ Hi-Tek Car & Lube car wash employees are now going to receive union protection, higher wages and workplace dignity after workers voted for their first union contract. The contract, ratified on May 29, is the first union contract for car wash workers in New York City, according to the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, the union that represents Hi-Tek Car & Lube.
The fight for union protection has been an uphill battle for the mostly immigrant workers paid low wages with no job protection or workplace safety conditions. Workers at the car wash began their fight for union protection in September 2012. Now, a number of car washes in Queens are also in the midst of working out deals for a union contract.