California Grocery Workers at Ralphs, Albertsons Banners Vote to Authorize Strike

Grocery workers at Kroger's Ralphs banner and Albertsons Co.'s Vons and Pavilions banners in Southern California have voted to authorize their union to call a strike if needed as negotiations resume March 30 between the union and the grocery retailers, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 770 said in a statement.

Close to 47,000 workers, representing seven UFCW union locals and covering more than 500 stores in Southern California, voted.

“Over the past week, you and your fellow Ralphs, Albertsons/Vons/Pavilions members have made your voice heard by overwhelmingly voting to authorize your bargaining committee, made up of your union and fellow co-workers, to call for a strike if needed,” UFCW 770 said in a statement. “Should your employers continue committing unfair labor practices (ULPs) like conducting unlawful surveillance of workers protesting or refusing to implement wage increases as required by your contract, to name a few, then we must take action.”

Labor contracts between the unionized grocery workers and Southern California grocery retailers expired at 11:59 p.m. March 6. The union urged workers not to walk out until it notifies workers and said, “If the companies force us to take action, we will have strike benefit funds available to support our members.”

UFCW said higher wages and unfair labor practices are part of the negotiations. Ralphs and Albertsons/Vons/Pavilions responded by offering a 60-cent-per-year hourly increase, which UFCW 770 said in a March 17 statement is "less than a 1% raise during a time of unprecedented inflation, rising cost of living and not to mention immense company profit" and "is nowhere close to reflecting your hard work and sacrifice."

With inflation at 7.9% overall, UFCW said in a release posted on its website that “we cannot continue to negotiate the contract we deserve while the companies break the law.”

In a March 27 statement from Ralphs, the grocery retailer said its stores will remain open to serve Southern California’s communities despite the strike authorization obtained by UFCW locals. The company said the union’s strike authorization, which is unrelated to Ralphs’ labor negotiations, will not derail the company from resuming bargaining for a new contract on March 30.

“Our proposal invests $141 million in new wages and prevents increases in health costs. This is a serious commitment by Ralphs to Southern California and to our exceptional associates,” said Robert Branton, VP of operations for Ralphs, in a March 28 statement. “Our three goals throughout negotiations are to reward and invest in our people, keep groceries affordable for our customers and maintain a sustainable business that creates jobs in the future. Ralphs’ proposal meets all three goals. The current UFCW proposal only meets one of those goals. We encourage the UFCW to join us in meaningful and balanced negotiations to promptly deliver wage increases to our associates.”

Citing that “nobody wins in a strike,” Ralphs referenced the nine-day strike in January by UFCW members working at King Soopers and City Market locations in the Denver metro area, which ended with UFCW Local 7 settling for “$9 million less for its members than what the company proposed in its last, best and final offer before the strike.”

Ralphs said its latest $141 million proposal would include an investment in new wages over the next three years, where all associates would receive wage increases through the life of the contract, and top-rate associates would receive a nearly $2 hourly increase to their current pay. For example, Ralphs said it is offering a full-time cashier with five years of experience a pay raise of nearly 9% over the life of the contract. It also said the current proposal would not require any increases in healthcare costs for its workers.

“The UFCW proposal seeks a more than 20% increase. This is a nonstarter and would lead to $400 more in grocery bills annually for the typical Southern California family,” Ralphs said. 

Ralphs said the union’s wage proposal would “raise grocery prices, but it could also push many customers to nonunion competitors who do not respect collective bargaining and ultimately reduced market share and unionized employment at Ralphs.”

In an email statement sent to WGB, Albertsons Cos. said, "The outcome of the strike authorization vote does not change anything related to this process. We remain committed to negotiating a contract that is fair to all parties, including our employees, and will continue to work to achieve that."