WASHINGTON (FNS) -- Supermarket industry groups last week applauded the probable end of striker-replacement legislation in this session of Congress.
The Senate failed twice last week to end a Republican-led filibuster on a bill that would have banned businesses from hiring permanent replacements for striking workers. Democratic leaders and union officials conceded it was unlikely the bill would be considered again in this session.
"This week's votes were a major victory for food distributors and consumers," Tim Hannonds, president and chief executive officer of the Food Marketing Institute, said in a statement issued by the organization. "This legislation would have caused more strikes, increased unemployment and disrupted communities all over this nation."
John Block, president of the National-American Wholesale Grocers Association, said in a statement that the bill had threatened to shatter "the long-standing balance of power between labor and management."
The president of the National Grocers Association, Tom Zaucha, attributed the success of the bill's opponents to grass roots lobbying.
