Busy Year for Union Contracts Ahead

WASHINGTON -- The United Food and Commercial Workers Union is gearing up for several large negotiations this year, including a renewal of a Southern California pact covering 70,000 workers at Vons, Albertsons and Ralphs that led to a 20-week strike-lockout in 2003-2004. Other big contracts scheduled for negotiations in 2007 include one for a 103-store Meijer region in Grand Rapids, Mich., covering nearly 29,000 workers; multi-employer contracts in Northern California and Washington state covering 24,000 and 13,600 workers, respectively, and Kroger contracts in Houston and Cincinnati covering about 12,000 and 9,000 workers, respectively. The UFCW has promised more solidarity in this year‘s talks -- last week workers at stores around the country were given stickers to wear that said, “Grocery workers and community members for good jobs and affordable health care.”