Arizona Workers Vote on Strike

PHOENIX — Workers at Safeway and Kroger Co.'s Fry's banner here are voting this week on whether to strike if the union leaders cannot agree on a new contract with the chains.

Votes to authorize a strike began yesterday in Phoenix and continue today and tomorrow in Phoenix and Tucson, according to United Food and Commercial Workers Local 99, which represents about 20,000 workers at the chains. Negotiations, which have been stalled since Aug. 18, are set to resume Thursday.

The most recent proposals form the supermarket chains are "unacceptable," the union said, citing "insulting wage increases" and "premiums that employees would have to pay for their health care."

Local reports quoted spokesmen for the chains as saying that negotiations were moving "slower than expected" but that they expected resolution of the contract disagreements.

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