Southern California grocery workers may soon authorize strike
Grocery store employees from Orange County and Los Angeles protest in front of the Ralphs at 6290 Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach March 14. Photos by MADDIE MANTOOTH, Staff Photographer
Discontent among Southern California grocery store workers may soon reach a boiling point as potentially thousands of workers strike for higher wages and improved store conditions. The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 324 and Local 770 union branches are hosting a vote March 21 to authorize a strike against the corporations that own the supermarket chains Albertsons, Ralphs, Vons and Pavilions.
Tensions came to a head as the union contract with the stores, representing around 60,000 workers across seven UFCW Local branches, expired March 6. According to a UFCW 770 press release, negotiations aimed to secure fair wages, improve worker safety, stable and predictable scheduling and better staffing proved fruitless. In the days leading up to the contract’s expiration, workers staged rallies at several stores.
Ralphs workers proposed a $5 raise over the next three years, which would come out to about $1.67 more per hour annually, but were offered a raise of $1.80 over this time-span, at a 60-cent annual increase. The DATE press release termed this offer “pennies” and essentially a “pay cut,” citing rising inflation rates. Kroger, Ralphs’ parent-company, saw “record profits” during 2020 when the pandemic hit and its streak of profits continues.
“When the pandemic hit, we showed up to make sure our communities were fed,” Rachel Fournier, a Ralphs employee of 17 years, said in a statement. “We put our health and our families’ health at risk — and now the corporate CEOs who hid in their offices and profited off of our sacrifice refuse to share the success and make our stores safer. Now, they are playing dirty and violating our rights. We have no choice but to stand up for ourselves and our families.”
The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union will vote to authorize a strike against supermarket chains March 21.
Robert Branton, the vice president of operations at Ralphs, expressed disappointment that an agreement was not reached during the 12 days of bargaining between the store and union members.
“While the company made several wage proposals, the union continues to propose very costly items, which impacts our ability to meet customer needs and remain competitive,” Branton said in an interview with ABC7.
Branton indicated that Ralphs is open to meeting with union leaders to reach an agreement.
“Negotiations are a process, and we're committed to reaching an agreement, no matter how long it takes,'' Branton said in a statement. "We are hopeful the union will return to the bargaining table with renewed interest in reaching a balanced agreement.”
The potential upcoming strike is not unprecedented, as workers from UFCW striked in 2003 against Albertsons, Ralphs, Vons and Pavilions for over four months. During this period, the chains involved in the dispute lost a combined $1.5 billion in sales.
The March 21 vote to authorize the strike will take place at the UFCW 324 office in Buena Park and the Hills Hotel in Laguna Hills from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Additional voting dates extend until March 25 and will take place at various Albertsons, Pavilions, Ralphs and Vons stores throughout Orange County. After the last date, union officials will tally the vote and inform workers of the results shortly after. .
The Panther will post a follow-up article outlining the outcome of the vote and its consequences for grocery workers and stores when the Chapman community returns from spring break.