Kroger Supermarket Workers Go on Strike in Denver

Kroger said Wednesday that its stores would remain open and that it was “reckless and self-serving” for the union to strike. The supermarket operator said that it had hired temporary workers to help staff stores and that employees from other parts of the country had traveled to fill in.

Union officials representing Kroger workers declined to comment on Wednesday. They have previously said they want to secure a new contract with better wages, health and retirement benefits, and to ensure a safer work environment for employees at a time when Kroger is generating higher profits. They said Tuesday that going on strike was the only way to get fairer terms after the company had offered unsatisfactory proposals throughout the past few months of negotiations.

Kroger has said it remains committed to settling an agreement that will benefit workers and keep prices down for consumers.

The Kroger strike comes as more workers demand better wages and benefits, seeking greater leverage as labor shortages challenge industries across the U.S.

About 1,400 Kellogg Co. workers recently ended a 2½-month strike by ratifying a new five-year contract. Workers at snack producer Mondelez International Inc. and farm-equipment maker Deere & Co. have also gone on strike in recent months. Starbucks Corp. baristas in Buffalo, N.Y., voted in December to form the first labor union in the coffee giant’s 50-year history, while Amazon.com Inc.’s warehouse workers in Alabama are holding a second union election after workers there voted against unionizing in 2021.

Many U.S. grocers increased hourly wages for workers at the start of the pandemic but phased out so-called hazard pay months later. The labor market has since tightened, companies say, as unemployment checks and federal stimulus checks made it harder for them to find workers. Retailers have offered overtime pay for workers who cover shifts, sick pay for employees who need to quarantine, and raised pay or provided referral bonuses to appeal to potential hires.

Workers and advocates have said supermarket employees deserve higher wages and more benefits because they are managing heavier workloads and stress while risking their health during the pandemic. Some workers have also been tasked with managing anxious shoppers, and explaining or enforcing their employers’ mask policies.

Tension between Kroger and the union representing its Colorado employees has been escalating in recent weeks as the two sides tried to negotiate a new collective-bargaining agreement.

The union in December sued King Soopers, accusing the Kroger-owned supermarket chain of breaching the collective-bargaining agreement by using third-party staffing services to hire workers in stores and using these workers to perform roles covered by the union.

During negotiations between the union and the company, King Soopers employees voted to strike on Jan. 2. The previous agreement expired at 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 8.

This week, King Soopers filed unfair labor practices charges against the union for refusing to bargain in good faith. The company said union leaders refused repeated requests to return to the negotiating table and rejected meditation services, adding that the union had given no indication of when it would re-engage in discussions.

The company said Tuesday that it offered its “last, best and final” offer, representing an investment of $170 million over the next three years in higher wages and expanded healthcare benefits.

The union declined King Soopers’ offer Tuesday, saying that the company didn’t respond to its requests on wage, health and safety matters.

Write to Jaewon Kang at [email protected]