Stop & Shop Strike: What you need to know

Stop & Shop employees left New England stores on Thursday, including many Connecticut sites, after failing to resolve a contractual stalemate.

On the second day of the strike, here's what you need to know:

Will Stop & Shop stores be open on Fridays?

Yes and no. It's about whether the store has enough people to work.

Stop & Shop pharmacies and People's United Bank branches are open in most stores.

Some pharmacies, usually composed of a pharmacist and a technician, work with a pharmacist only on Fridays.

"It's good," said Alina Munteanu, pharmacist at Fairfield Stop & Shop. "The drugs are important."

Here is the status of some Stop & Shop stores:

The extension of Lake Avenue supermarket in Danbury is open at 8 pm Friday. The normal opening hours of the supermarket are from 6 am to midnight. One representative said that only "non-union workers" were working on Friday.

Danbury's Newtown Stop & Shop is closed on Friday, but the bank and the pharmacy will be open. An employee stated that there were no non-union workers in the store.

the Newtown Stop & Shop at 228 South Main Street is open until 8 pm, instead of 10 pm closing time. The pharmacy and the bank are open.

the Hamden Stop & Shop at 2355 Dixwell Ave. is open. The contingent of strikers is significantly larger than at Whalley Avenue. No police presence. The people who are knocking are against the door.

The Stop & Shop on Whalley Avenue in New Haven is closed.

the Amity Stop & Shop in New Haven is open, but the gas station is closed. Only self-service is available without a cashier.

Workers in front of the entrance said that many buyers came Thursday and went to the store anyway, saying they were unaware of the strike. Cashiers were open, but no cash register was open.

On Friday morning, the car park was largely deserted and the workers said that they hoped the message spread that they were asking their customers to wait for the contractual dispute to be settled, but then came back to make their purchases.

The Amity store offers one of the largest Passover selections in the region. Passover begins next week.

The workers said that before receiving the order to start the strike Thursday outside, they had tried to tidy up the products and to make sure that the products were refrigerated well so that No food is spoiled without employees in the store.

In FairfieldThe 1160 Kings Highway Cutoff Stop & Shop is open, but the store is more empty than normal. The striking workers are on the roadside and shop doors, ready to strike for as long as necessary. A handful of customers are at the store, but the aisles are usually empty.

Why are workers on strike?

More than 600 members of Local 371 United Food and Commercial Workers, representing workers in much of Connecticut and headquartered in Westport, voted in early March to strike while contract negotiations with the grocery chain were at a standstill.

Union members refuse to accept time reductions, the elimination of the Sunday bonus, no salary increase over the next three years, increased automation and a reduction in health and retirement benefits.

The unions said the company had made more than $ 2 billion in profits last year and benefited from a $ 225 million reduction in US taxes in 2017.

Stop & Shop said it had offered local unions a "good and reasonable" offer, including salary increases, maintenance of health benefits and an increase in the company's contributions to the UFCW pension fund.

What do workers say on Friday?

Workers at the stop and Whalley Avenue store in New Haven had these comments:

Ebony Bynum, 32, has been working in the store for eight years. She said that better compensation would help her to support her son, especially to pay for her prescriptions. "It hurts (to go on strike), but if they can see us and hear us hitting here, maybe they will come to an agreement."

Helen C. Powell, 62, worked for 18 years at Shaw, before the Stop & Shop on Whalley, and for eight years in the next store. "I took part in the construction of Stop & Shop after Shaw's closure," said Powell, who was also a deputy-Democrat-Democrat in New Haven.

She added that the store serves local residents, ethnic groups, students, students who go to school in the morning – it's a vital community institution. "We're asking for our benefits, retirement … They can call us Evel Knievel, but I'm here to serve the public," Powell said. "We do not try to steal them, but we are looking for our fair share."

Denise Tartaglia is the union representative of the store. She works as a meat packer. She said she's been in the store since it opened eight years ago. She added that workers wanted to maintain their health care at current cost, without the risk of doubling or tripling the cost of co-payments and deductibles. They also want to protect future employees one and a half times on Sundays and, hopefully, get a pay raise.

New Haven Mayor Toni N. Harp will join strike workers from Stop & Shop in front of Whalley Avenue at 1:15 pm to show support for workers and adequate compensation for their work.

At the Dixwell Avenue store in Hamden:

Joe Renaldi, 60, said he's been working for Stop & Shop for 43 years. He is assistant director of the grocery store at Dixwell Avenue.

Renaldi said the workers were trying to maintain what they had in terms of health care, pensions and an hour and a half on Sunday. The union has been trying for months to talk with companies Stop & Shop without success, he said. Their contract expired in February. Now it was time to strike.

"We are getting to the point where we have to set foot," Renaldi said. "They pushed us to that limit."

Renaldi said he had participated in another strike at Stop & Shop in 1988. This walkout lasted about 11 hours, he said.

Apart from Fairfield Dee Dee Sicona, of Stop & Shop, who has been with the company for 41 years, said: "We do not bother until they've done it."

"We do not know anything at the moment and we just want fair wages," said Pam Iannucci, a worker at Stop and Shop for 39 years.

Stop & Shop at Ridgeway Mall in Stamford:

Mike Berarducci, who heads the dairy department, said he was trying to get a "fair deal".

Berarducci has been working for Stop & Shop for 35 years and hopes that shoppers will join strikers for not shopping at the supermarket as long as the stalemate in contract negotiations continues.

"If they care about their community, they care about the people who live next to them, we are these people and we need them to support us to send a message to the owners of this business we just want what's right, "he said," we want a fair deal for everyone.Business greed will make no one better.They go further in our pockets to line up themselves. "

On Friday, striking workers were stationed at three different locations around the supermarket, at places where cars entered and exited the center.

The police asked them to move away from the entrance of the store, where they were Thursday afternoon.

Daniel Petruccelli Jr., the store's product manager who was also on strike, said the half-empty car park indicated that some people were staying away.

"Usually, at that time, all the parking would be complete," he said, pointing to the location just in front of the market.

While the store was still open, a sign at the entrance indicated that it was working with "limited services" and that it was only open from 8:00 to 20:00, contrary to usual schedules. from 6:00 to midnight.

Inside the store, the pharmacy and People's United Bank remained open, but some sections were closed.

The hot bar and salad bar were empty and the deli was closed. The bakery section seemed open, but no employee was holding the counter.

Outside the store, the drivers honk to support the strikers.

Petruccelli said some customers had even brought donuts and gift cards to workers on the picket line.

"We are not on strike because we do not want to work. We want to work, we want to serve customers and do our work, "said Petruccelli.

AT Westport Stop & Shop on Post Road East:

"We have a lot of support. Everyone is outside. All the workers are here, "said Pat Duphiney, an employee of Stop & Shop, who worked for the company for 42 years and for the Westport store for five years.

Although she had heard that non-workers had joined the picket line in other cities to show their support for the workers, the strike at Westport is composed solely of Westport Stop & employees. Shop, said Duphiney.

Several drivers honking in support of workers waving placards on the road in front of Stop & Shop parking lot where Duphiney protested.

"It's a tough crowd. It's Westport, "said Duphiney, noting that some customers had crossed the picket line and continued to shop at the store despite the workers' strike.

In spite of these customers, Shop Steward Bill Leger said the strike was "fantastic," estimating that 90% of customers were pulling out of the store and were very supportive of the workers, Léger, who demonstrated just outside the store. store entrance, said.

The car park, where cars are scarce on Friday, is usually filled with cars around 10 am Friday, said Léger.

"They are family. We see them all the time, "said Léger, adding," Some are going to get their medications and that's fine. "

Ed Whitney, of the Westporter, came out with several shopping bags in a cart and said that he was still shopping at the store, "because I need food." Otherwise, I'll skip it. "

"I sympathize with the strikers, but I also have to grocery store and keep the family alive," Whitney said.

When asked why he decided to shop at Stop & Shop instead of at another grocery store, Whitney replied, "Because I always shop here."

Several workers told their clients that the strike only concerned the desire for a pay raise.

"People say we want more money and a pay raise, but it's more than a salary increase. It's about health care and our pension. "Said product manager John Merritt.

Duphiney agreed that the protest mainly concerned cuts in workers' pensions and increased deductibles for health benefits, but pointed out that an increase is also important because the cost of living has increased but wages have not increased.

"They make billions and they want us to give back. We just want our fair share, "said Léger.

In Greenwich:

Striking grocery workers have received support from other unions.

Greenwich firefighters posted a statement via social media on Friday: "Please support our union brothers and sisters and do not go through their picket lines."

A fire truck from Greenwich sounded his horn several times to support the strikers who passed by.

In Middletown

Dozens of union members from Local 371 UFCW-AFL-CIO were in the cold outside the two Stop & Shop entrances on East Main Street in Middletown on Friday morning, joining tens of thousands of employees in Connecticut , Massachusetss and Rhode Island, protesting against unfair labor practices. .

The protesters, who shouted at the motorists who passed by, saw the strikers and closed the traffic signs, said that about 1 in 20 people had crossed the picket line and had gone to Inside for shopping. The interior looked like a ghost town.

In Madison:

At around noon on Friday, about 25 employees were standing outside Stop & Shop with sandwich panels bearing the following inscriptions: "UFCWI MEMBERS OF LOCAL 919 ON UNEQUAL WORK PRACTICES.

Customers continued to go to the store and cars and trucks drove by honking. Striking workers were at the two entrances to the store, as well as at the parking entrances.

"No stop for shopping today," shouted some of the workers as shoppers passed by. Only one entrance was open, the sign on the other indicated "THIS ENTRY IS CLOSED TEMPORARILY. PLEASE USE ANOTHER DOOR THANKS.

The other entrance had a sign saying "OPEN to serve you. 8h to 20h Limited service. Explaining why once the entrance was open, a retired worker explained that there were not enough people inside to monitor the doors. "They (the customers) would run out for the grocery store." He added that he was here because "These are all my colleagues here."

The pharmacy remains open as well as People's United Bank.

None of the registers were inhabited, the exit was done only at the self-check-out.

How many stores are there?

The grocery giant employs over 31,000 associates in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. The company operates 92 stores in only Connecticut.

Quincy, Mass., Stop & Shop, a division of the Dutch supermarket giant Ahold Delhaize, has 415 stores in the north-east of the country, but the strike affects 240 stores in the three states.

Should I cross the picket line?

It's your decision. Many customers have chosen to go to other stores.

The union said, "Please honor the picket lines of your sisters and brothers and shop at these other grocery stores where workers are represented by UFCW:

Rites Shop are located in the following cities: Hamden, West Haven, Milford, East Haven, Stratford, Enfield, West Hartford, Canton and Orange.

ACME Markets: Riverside, New Canaan, Greenwich and Stamford

Fairway market: Stamford

Food Bazaar: Bridgeport

Kings SupermarketGreenwich