Informational Picketing Begins Today at Some Washington Grocery Stores
Grocery store workers at Kroger (Fred Meyer and QFC) and Albertsons/Safeway are taking to the picket lines across King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish counties today and tomorrow for informational picketing after 4 months of failed contract negotiations. A press release from the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 21 and 367, and the Teamsters Union 38 said that the purpose is to reach out to customers of those stores about the serious challenges the unions face. Tom Geiger, Communications Director for UFCW 21, said that after four months of contract negotiations that cover nearly 30,000 grocery store workers, Informational Pickets have been called for 32 locations this week.
A schedule of stores starts in Tacoma on Tues 7/30, most actions are on Weds 7/31 in King County, then more sites on Thurs 8/1 in Snohomish County and Tacoma. No stores from the Grays Harbor area were listed on the schedule, but local store employees are members of the same unions.
The purpose of Informational Picketing is to reach out to customers about the serious challenges in the contract negotiations. Geiger said that while there has been progress made in negotiation sessions, there is still a long way to go to reach an agreement. He added, “Workers are increasingly feeling the pressure of understaffing, unpredictable schedules, and low wages. While the wealthy CEOs of the big national grocery store chains are making more than 300 times their average worker, the employers are proposing wage increases of only a fraction of what workers need.”
https://kbkw.com/informational-picketing-begins-today-at-some-washington-grocery-stores/
