Indiana Kroger Rank and File Rally for a Fair Contract
On Sunday, August 3, workers from across Indiana organized a rank and file press conference and rally to demand a fair Kroger contract and more transparency from union leadership. Rank and file member Laurie Gorden describes how they did it and what she took away from the experience.
After the 30 minute ride to the press event, I was able to introduce myself face-to-face to the many other rank and file members I had met online over the past few weeks. Since we first voted down our contract at the end of May, we had been meeting every week on Zoom to discuss our organizing plans to fight for a fair contract and a more transparent, member-driven union. Through those Zoom meetings, we came up with the idea for the press rally and had made our plans to talk to our coworkers about it, in addition to collecting petition signatures, organizing button campaigns and Yellow T-shirt Days, and sharing car signs with our demands on them.
I’m a bit of an introverted person. Sticking my hand out to introduce myself to strangers is a little outside my comfort zone, but I believed in our fight for a better contract, and I knew that would mean talking to my coworkers and meeting other union members outside of my store. At our rally, I met at least thirty different workers all in the same fight from stores from Kokomo, Fishers, Connersville, and the 10th & Shadeland store in Indianapolis where we were gathered.
In the crowd, I spotted UAW t-shirts, members from Teamsters Local 135, and BCTGM (Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco and Grain Millers) Local 372A. Community supporters from groups like the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) came to support us. I spoke with some of them — some had traveled all the way from Lafayette to offer us solidarity, and they had some awesome homemade signs.
I was impressed to see how many members of the community came out to support us. “I don’t work at Kroger, but I do shop there. I’m here to say if you were to strike, they would not get any of my grocery money and I will also stand and picket WITH you,” said one customer in the crowd. I heard this from others, and felt humbled to receive such support from strangers.
Three members from O.U.R. Local 700 (Organized, United, Ready) spoke. Amy Reynolds described how we were shut out of the bargaining meetings and voted NO on the first tentative agreement by 74%. She shared how we organized our rank and file group, and turned around six weeks later and rejected the second tentative agreement as well.
David Frederick described our major bargaining issues and our fight against concessionary contracts. He explained how the second tentative agreement included an offer of a $200 gift card to entice us to ratify a contract. He held up a Kroger gift card in his hand and waved it to the crowd, showing just how insulting this offer truly is.
Sarah Ford pointed out how, as a pharmacy technician, cutting hours and understaffing the pharmacy puts the very health and safety of our communities at risk.
In between each speaker, rank and file member Andrea Reynolds led us in union chants. It was fun to chant, cheer, and give a “whoop” here and there (also not my regular routine!).
Tim Jones, a shop steward at Pepsi and member of Teamsters Local 135 spoke and offered solidarity and support from the Teamsters. He expressed how our fight is about ALL workers feeling short changed.
Scott Sutton, a member of BCTGM Local 372A, spoke next. He had at least a half dozen or so of his coworkers in the crowd. Many Local 372A members work for Kroger in the bakery that supplies the baked goods we sell in our stores. They pledged to stand beside us in the event of a strike.
Last was Indianapolis City Councilman Jesse Brown. He pledged his support for all workers fighting for a fair contract and a liveable wage.
Many of our workers had to get to work after the rally, but the rest of us went next door to the pub for a cold drink and some pub grub. It was so nice to hang out informally, swapping work stories and non-work stories.
The real “news” came over the next 24 hours. Our efforts paid off as local news coverage of the rally started rolling in. Kroger was forced to put out a written statement saying effectively: “We acknowledge our employees have a right to express themselves, blah blah blah…but here’s our numbers to show why we think they’re just whining”.
Monday morning, it was announced that the contract in Fort Wayne would be extended from its August contract expiration date until September 27. In the past, Fort Wayne contracts have always been identical to Indy. Through our organizing, we pushed the company to take bargaining seriously. We’ve shown both the company and our local union that they can’t force a subpar contract on the membership. We’re standing up and fighting back for the contract that we deserve.
That same morning, our own UFCW Local 700 leadership posted a bargaining update along with a link to a bargaining survey. I firmly believe this is a direct reaction to our rally Sunday, calling publicly for a fair contract and a more democratic union. It’s not a coincidence that, after months of bargaining, the day after our press conference is when a new bargaining survey gets released.
This is what a unified membership can achieve. I remain cautiously optimistic that the next tentative agreement will be better, thanks to the committed organizing of rank and file members rising up. I remain committed to voting NO as many times as it takes until we get retro pay, real progress on staffing issues, and the respect ALL my union brothers and sisters deserve.
Laurie Gorden is a Kroger worker in Noblesville, IN and a rank and file member of UFCW Local 700. She has worked in the deli and bakery for over 9 years.