The union representing thousands of Food4less employees has announced a provisional labor agreement with the food company, avoiding a threatened strike.
Earlier in June, local union leaders from United Food and Commercial Workers spoke held a strike vote after their previous contract expired without a new agreement in place.
Workers voted overwhelmingly to authorize the strike, prompting officials from The Kroger Co., owner of Food4less and other popular supermarket chains, to resume negotiations with union leaders from UFCW Locals 8GS, 324, 770, 1167, 1428 and 1442 .
“We are proud to announce a preliminary agreement with Food 4Less/Foods Co., which we unanimously recommend to our colleagues,” the union’s Bargaining Committee said in a statement. “We are grateful for the solidarity and strength shown by our colleagues during the negotiations, as well as the overwhelming support we have received from our customers and community members. Without them we could not have reached this deal.”
Terms of the new contract have not yet been released, but union representatives say they have been actively seeking higher wages and safety improvements for the more than 6,000 members they represent at 15 different Food4less locations in LA County.
Before news of the tentative deal, union representatives alleged that Kroger officials were trying to strong-arm employees into accepting an offer that was lower than what they offer to other grocery store workers in the area.
A Kroger spokesperson said they had previously offered more than $70 million in wage investments and improvements in both health care and retirement benefits.
“We will continue to do everything we can to balance investments in wages and overall well-being while keeping food affordable for our customers,” a statement from The Kroger Co. said at the time.
This is a developing story. Come back for more information.
