The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 said union members working for Safeway and Albertsons grocery stores in Colorado have voted to strike after nine months of negotiations failed to reach a new collective bargaining agreement to replace one that expired in January.
Safeway and Albertsons workers across metro Denver, including Boulder and Castle Rock, approved an unfair labor practice strike, as did workers at stores in Conifer, Evergreen, Fountain, Grand Junction, Idaho Springs, Parker, Pueblo, Salida, Steamboat Springs and Vail, the UFCW Local 7 said in a news release Thursday night.
The votes on whether to authorize a strike took place last week and earlier this week, with 99% of metro Denver workers approving a strike, the union said. It represents the first time that Safeway workers in the state have voted to strike over unfair labor practices since 1996.
A date for a walkout hasn’t been announced, but the clock is ticking, said UFCW Local 7 President Kim Cordova. Cordova said late Friday afternoon the union was still waiting to find out if Albertsons, the owner of Safeway, intended to make a “time is of the essence” offer to head off a strike.
If an offer isn’t made or if an offer is made that the union rejects, then the union would provide 72 hours’ notice to terminate the extension on the contract, which had expired in January.
A rejection would then set the stage for a strike next week. In the strike against King Soopers and City Market, workers took to the picket lines in early February, six days after the strike vote results were announced. That labor action lasted nearly two weeks. Cordova said a new contract still isn’t in place parent company Kroger.
“We have been more than patient for months as the company slashed our hours and ignored workers’ proposals on staffing and other key issues. Incredibly, Safeway and Albertsons have now chosen to walk away from a signed agreement for retroactive pay and benefit increases and instead are only offering increases going forward. This is the essence of bargaining in bad faith. Time has run out,” said Kevan Kohlman, a Safeway worker from Grand Junction and member of the negotiating committee, in a news release.
More than 150,000 UFCW and Teamster workers in Colorado, Washington and California have been negotiating for new contracts, and a chief complaint they want to address is understaffing at stores, which they say has worsened working conditions for them and worsened shopping conditions for customers.
“At the bargaining table, this employer is holding hands with King Soopers and City Market to propose major cuts to workers’ health care benefits, and to threaten the financial security of our pension beneficiaries on fixed incomes, while continuing to reject meaningful efforts to address chronic understaffing in stores. On top of the concessionary proposals at the negotiating table, Safeway and Albertsons have gone back on their agreements,” said Cordova.
Workers are seeking better wages, better staffing levels, affordable health care and a reliable pension, Cordova said, adding that union proposals have been rejected or ignored and earlier agreements reneged on. Albertsons is also looking to divert funds out of a retiree healthcare plan funded by workers to support benefits for current employees, Cordova said.
“Safeway in Colorado remains committed to productive discussions with UFCW Local 7, and we have contract extensions in place while we do so. We respect the rights of workers to engage in collective bargaining and are negotiating in good faith to achieve an agreement,” Albertsons/Safeway said in a statement sent by Heather Halpape, a spokeswoman for the Safeway Denver division.
“Our focus remains on providing exceptional service to our customers and fostering a positive working environment for our associates. All Safeway and Albertsons stores in Colorado are open and ready to continue serving our communities,” the statement said.
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