California Labor Talks to Resume Next Monday

LOS ANGELES -- Contract talks will resume here next Monday between seven locals of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union and the three major area employers -- Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons. Those discussions ended abruptly last Wednesday when union representatives left the bargaining table after the employers issued a statement indicating they would lock out union members at all three companies if any one retailer was struck. The current contract, which was signed in 2004 after a 141-day strike-lockout, expired March 5 and was extended through today, with ongong extensions going forward on a day-to-day basis, subject to a 72-hour cancellation notice by either side. The seven locals include approximately 55,500 employees at nearly 800 Southern California stores. -- Elliot Zwiebach