Southern California members in UFCW Locals 8-GS, 135, 324, 770, 1167, 1428 and 1442 are building towards strike-readiness to win a strong contract as management makes subpar offers.

Negotiations are heating up in Southern California. Grocery Workers Rising, a coalition of UFCW Locals 8-GS, 135, 324, 770, 1167, 1428, and 1442, has been turning up the heat on the company to respond to subpar offers at the bargaining table. The coalition covers more than 50,000 grocery workers bargaining contracts with Kroger, Albertsons, Ralphs, Gelsons, Stater Bros, and more.

On April 3, Kroger and Albertsons presented a subpar wage proposal that included raises of just $2.50 over three years for only employees at top rate. The next day, members turned in thousands of petitions from Southern California UFCW grocery members to the company.

The Grocery Workers Rising coalition is organizing a march on April 15 in La Verne, CA, from a Vons location to a Stater Bros. The march will show the employers that grocery workers will not settle for poverty wages, understaffed stores, and unsafe working conditions.

The march on April 15 is one of several actions Grocery Workers Rising has organized this year. On February 28, over 700 grocery workers all but shut down an Albertsons in Buena Park, CA, rallying outside of the building two days before their contracts expired on March 2.

Workers have also been collecting petition signatures store by store and organizing marches on the boss, where they approach their store manager with a stack of petitions demanding better wages, better staffing, and better stores at the bargaining table. The companies have been playing hard ball at the bargaining table in Southern California, pushing back on proposals that would provide adequate staffing in stores and fair wages for workers. In order to win, workers need to send a strong message to the company that members are united and ready to strike if necessary. The April 15 march is another escalation to show the company members won’t stand for poverty wages and understaffed stores.

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*Members in Southern California turn in thousands of petition signatures to management at bargaining in April. Photo via UFCW Local 770.*

WHY FULL MEMBER PARTICIPATION AT THE BARGAINING TABLE MATTERS

There are many different ways that contract bargaining could look. Typically, the company side brings their lawyers and corporate big wigs. But on the union side, a wide range of combinations of participation and openness can affect how we bargain and what we win. Take a look at the table below.

*Please note that “Open Bargaining” and “Members on the Bargaining Committee” are technically two different things. You can have rank and file members on a bargaining committee but still have closed bargaining sessions, where not all union members are able to attend.

However, open bargaining and rank and file members on bargaining committees often go hand in hand.

Give your local union’s bargaining practices a check-up. Where do they fall on the table? Somewhere in the middle? How might you want your local union’s bargaining practices to be a little different? Are bargaining committees appointed or elected?

WHY PARTICIPATION MATTERS

Our greatest strength as union members comes f rom our power in numbers. When we can stand united, hundreds of members strong, at the bargaining table, we demonstrate that power to management. We win stronger contracts when members are informed, involved, and empowered, both in and out of bargaining.