PRESS RELEASE: WFWU-CWA Files Unfair Labor Practice Charge Against Wells Fargo Over Secret Bargaining Tactics

For Immediate Release: August 25, 2025
Contact:  Sean Nesmith ([email protected]), CWA Communications, 202-340-4361

WFWU-CWA Files Unfair Labor Practice Charge Against Wells Fargo Over Secret Bargaining Tactics

(Albuquerque, N.M.) — Today, Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA (WFWU-CWA) filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Wells Fargo, alleging that the company secretly utilized virtual meeting software that permits audio recording and transcribing capabilities during contract negotiations with WFWU-CWA, in direct violation of Sections 8(a)(1) and 8(a)(5) of the National Labor Relations Act obligating both parties to bargain in good faith. 

During WFWU-CWA’s latest bargaining session on July 18, union members reported that a device was connected to the laptop of one of the Littler Mendelson attorneys representing Wells Fargo. As bargaining continued, a voice transmitted from the laptop, which ended up being identified as Wells Fargo Human Resources Executive Stan Sherrill. The incident occurred only three days after a Charlotte rally was held by CWA members, local labor allies, and the AFL-CIO to condemn Sherrill for union-busting. In response to the violation of the NLRA and the trust between the parties, the WFWU-CWA bargaining committee ended the bargaining session.

“To secretly have an executive like Stan Sherrill listening in on contract negotiations clearly shows that Wells Fargo management think that they’re above labor law—there’s no telling how many sessions could have been discussed behind closed doors or recorded without our knowledge or consent," said Committee for Better Banks Organizing Director Nick Weiner. “Per Wells Fargo’s own demands, our members have been prohibited from attending virtually even when family emergencies arise. Although the bank continues to tout that it is bargaining in good faith, this blatant hypocrisy and NLRB violation show otherwise.”

In the unfair labor practice charge, WFWU-CWA cites a recent memorandum from NLRB Acting General Counsel William B. Cowen stating that “a party which secretly records collective bargaining sessions commits a per se violation of the National Labor Relations Act.” Wells Fargo continues to demand all bargaining be done only in person.

Late last year, members of WFWU-CWA elected a national bargaining team who have participated in several contract negotiation sessions with Wells Fargo. Because Wells Fargo has refused to agree to bargain one national contract to cover all of the union locations, WFWU-CWA has been scheduling bargaining at each individual branch that has voted to join WFWU-CWA, making bargaining sessions repetitive. 

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About Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA

The Committee for Better Banks’ Wells Fargo Workers United-CWA is the only public effort by Wells Fargo employees to organize a union. With a union, workers are seeking to address chronic understaffing, unfair sales pressure, and unreasonable workloads to improve their working conditions and allow them to better support Wells Fargo customers. Since the union’s launch in 2021, Wells Fargo workers across virtually every state Wells Fargo operates in are organizing with WFWU-CWA, collaborating with shareholders, members of Congress, and officials at the Federal Reserve and the Department of Treasury to drive accountability at the country’s fourth largest bank.