Southern California supermarket workers will vote on whether to authorize a strike after unsuccessful negotiationss with the corporations that own Ralphs and Vons /Pavilions/Albertsons.
The employment contract of more than 60,000 supermarket store employees expired at midnight on Sunday, March 6 .
The corporations that represent supermarkets offered an increase of a few cents as a proposal for a new contract, while bargaining committees of the workers presented proposals that would increase wages, in addition to improve working conditions in stores.
Related: Supermarket workers seek a fair contract in California
In a statement, the Worker Union is Food and Local Trade 770 (UFCW 770 ) said that corporations engage in illegal and covert tactics to prevent workers from exercising their rights and protections guaranteed by labor and federal laws.
Union workers work at Ralphs, Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions, Stater Bros. and Gelson’s supermarkets, which have stores in Southern California.
“When the pandemic hit, we showed up to work to make sure our community had food. We put our health and the health of our family at risk – and now corporate executives who hid in their offices and profited from our sacrifice refuse to share in the success and improve safety in our stores,” the employee said. for 17 years at Ralphs, Rachel Fournier, in the statement.
Food employees, butchers, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, among other workers who work in supermarkets, have separate contracts.
The workers are represented by the union locals of the UFCW 8GS, 135 , 324, 770, 1167, 1428 and 1442, from central California to the Mexican border.
The vote to authorize the strike comes after the workers documented actions by the corporations that affected the negotiations and violated their rights to union representation .
The employees filed Unfair Labor Practices (ULP) charges with the federal government’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Ralphs and Vons/Albertsons/Pavilions for violating labor laws by surveilling, intimidating, and interfering with workers participating in union activities, for failing to bargain over bonuses offered to employees, and improperly subcontracting work to outside contractors, among other violations of labor laws.
Charges were also filed with the NLRB against Stater Bros. after company managers violated federal labor law by attempting to bargain with workers from i way ndividual and for delaying negotiations.
According to the union, grocery sales increased exponentially, making record profits for grocery companies, mentioning that Kroger, the parent company of Ralphs, made profits of up to $4 billion dollars in 1442.
You may be interested:
· The Super appeals to a fine for not ‘protecting its employees’· Rite Aid workers ratified a new 3-year labor contract with salary and safety improvements in stores
Food 4 Less supermarket workers fight for job improvements