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Grocery workers in Oregon and southwestern Washington voted in favor of a strike if the workers' union failed to reach a satisfactory agreement with traders representing stores such as Fred Meyer, QFC, Safeway and Albertsons.
Members of Local 555 of United Food and Commercial Workers in Baker City voted Saturday night to authorize a strike. This vote ended a series of 92 meetings held this summer in Oregon and southwest Washington, according to Kelley McAllister, the union's director of communications. The union members voted almost unanimously, said McAllister, to allow a strike if necessary.
That's not to say that a strike is inevitable, McAllister said, but this gives the Local 555 bargaining team the power to call a strike, which adds to the pressure on the local chains. Grocery store for them to enter into an agreement.
Both parties have been negotiating since June 2018, said McAllister, but workers and employers still have to agree on acceptable terms.
Individual contracts vary in detail, but McAllister said salaries were a stumbling block. "We are very far from employers," McAllister said.
Fred Meyer has posted updates to the negotiations. According to McAllister, the company's offer calls for wage increases that are considerably lower than the union's expectations.
According to McAllister, the union is also seeking to address pay disparities between men and women in Fred Meyer stores, as highlighted by a recent study on pay equity published by Olympic Analytics, a Seattle-based company that , according to its website, provides consulting services for unions, non-profit organizations and government agencies. The study, funded by the union, revealed that women were more likely to hold jobs in lower-paying departments.
"The grocery jobs were previously middle-class jobs," McAllister said. "With income inequality getting worse, many workers are at risk of homelessness exclusion, while wages remain stagnant."
There is no strict deadline for a strike, McAllister said. The next step is the next trading session between the Unity Negotiation Team and the Employer Negotiators, which will be held in Portland on August 29th.
"We'll see how that happens," McAllister said.
Efforts to reach the representatives of the companies Fred Meyer and Safeway / Albertsons were unsuccessful Sunday.
In a statement posted on a Fred Meyer online site dealing with negotiations, the company said:
"We will continue to negotiate in good faith and demand a balanced contract, which will reward you with salary increases, high quality, affordable health care and a pension for your retirement. A fair and balanced deal with our associates is essential to the health and success of the business.
We are all part of the same team and want the same thing: a successful and stable company, able to provide a paid job in a fair way and with quality benefits for you and your family. "
– Kristi Turnquist
[email protected] 503-221-8227 @Kristiturnquist
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