Colorado faces a second large-scale grocery chain strike this year
Colorado Safeway and Albertsons Workers Vote to Strike
The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 has announced that union members working for Safeway and Albertsons in Colorado have voted to go on strike after nine months of negotiations failed to produce a new collective bargaining agreement. The previous agreement expired in January.
Workers at Safeway and Albertsons locations across metro Denver, including Boulder and Castle Rock, have approved an unfair labor practice strike. The same decision was made by workers at stores in Conifer, Evergreen, Fountain, Grand Junction, Idaho Springs, Parker, Pueblo, Salida, Steamboat Springs, and Vail. The union reported that 99% of workers in metro Denver voted in favor of the strike. A strike date has not yet been announced.
In a statement, Kevan Kohlman, a Safeway worker from Grand Junction and member of the negotiating committee, expressed frustration with the company’s actions, stating that Safeway and Albertsons have failed to honor agreements on retroactive pay and benefit increases, choosing instead to offer only increases moving forward. Kohlman accused the companies of bargaining in bad faith.
UFCW Local 7 President Kim Cordova highlighted the issues at the bargaining table, including proposed cuts to healthcare benefits and threats to pension beneficiaries on fixed incomes. Cordova also mentioned the ongoing challenge of chronic understaffing in stores.
Workers are advocating for better wages, improved staffing levels, affordable healthcare, and a secure pension. Cordova noted that union proposals have been disregarded, and previous agreements have been broken by Safeway and Albertsons.
More than 150,000 UFCW and Teamster workers in Colorado, Washington, and California are involved in negotiations for new contracts. One of the main concerns raised by the workers is the impact of understaffing on working conditions and customer experience in stores.
