By: Jorge Luis Macías / Special for Real America News 07 from January 2021
In the middle of a great battle against COVID infections – 19, about 2, 80 unionized workers of Food 4 Less stores demand a new contract with greater protections of job security, salary increase and the so-called “payment for danger” at work.
The workers’ petition sheet arises due to the increasing number of infections in their workplaces and the death of nine of their colleagues.
“Basically we are negotiating with six locals a payment for the danger in which our members operate daily,” said Erik Ramos, union member of the Union Food and Commercial Workers International (UFCW), Los Angeles Local 770. “This payment should exist in our new employment contract, whether there is a pandemic or not, but in fire seasons or natural disasters when we have to go back to work where people buy their food.”
On Wednesday, dozens of store workers participated in a motorcade at the Food 4 Less in Hollywood.
Erik Ramos (c), trade unionist of the International Union of Commercial and Food (UFCW), local 770 LA. (Jorge Macías) With messages from “Fight 4 More” (Fight for more) stuck on the windows and on the hoods of the cars, the protesters demanded the demand for sufficient hours, enough personnel, respect in their work and opportunities to advance.
In addition to petitioning management for an increase in safety protections, they asked Kroger, the company that owns the supermarket chain, to reinstate the risk payment for essential retail store workers that was withdrawn from them in May. They are also launching their “Fight 4 More / Lucha 4 Más” campaign to win a new union contract.
The contract covers almost 2, 500 workers in Los Angeles and expires in early March. Workers will present their petitions at various local Food 4 Less stores. The first time the request form was delivered was in the Hollywood store.
“Food 4 Less should pay us more because we risk our lives every day and work for pennies, while they become billionaires,” said Susan Buddy, who was infected with COVID – 19 in November of 2020, and he is just recovering at his home in Arleta, in the San Fernando Valley.
“Ago 27 years I have worked for this company and my salary has barely increased a dollar and 32 pennies, ”he said. “I would ask Kroger managers to touch their hearts and for the sake of their workers to do the right thing, to respect us and to value us.”
Worker Susan Buddy, bottom left, suffered from COVID and is now recovering. Susan, aged 50, recounted that, when he contracted the coronavirus, one 13 began with the first symptoms of a lot of cough, pain in the body and drowsiness.
“I felt really tired and the day 17 confirmed that I was infected, ”he said. “I was in quarantine, but every day I had a headache, fever, cough, chills; it was horrible, to the degree that my doctor had to constantly check my oxygen levels in the blood “, he said.
Therefore, he pointed out that the owners of Kroger,” must act compassionately and caring for their employees because they are making mountains of money and they don’t even know what it’s like to be a front-line worker. ”
Norma Leiva, a woman originally from Guatemala who works for Food 4 Less supermarkets since 1988 stated that she and all her colleagues have been working under an intense level of emotional stress “because there have been many infected people and with the few that are in the stores we have to do double or triple work”.
“It has been very difficult to work like this”, he claimed. “Many people have gotten sick with this fatal virus.”
She added that, as the manager of the reception center in a Food 4 Less store, she protects herself by using a double face mask and constantly goes to a hand sanitizer station to avoid any contagion.
“Many people do not want to follow the safety guidelines and that puts us in danger; the company should be more strict with the security protocols for us ”, he assured. “I say this because a homeless person entered without a mask and without a shirt; a colleague told him to leave, but he yelled in his face, he spat on the floor and four days later my friend was infected with the virus. ”
Vanessa E. Rosales , director of corporate affairs for Food 4 Less told Real America News that, “in addition to security and recognition measures related to COVID – 19, we continue to invest in permanent salary increases for our first-line associates. ”
He highlighted that during the period of 2018 to 2020, “we will invested an increase of $ 800 million in associate salary increases across our family of companies. As a result of this continued investment, we have increased the average compensation rate to more than $ 24 per hour on Food 4 Less with benefits such as health care and retirement benefits included. ”