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UFCW, Teamsters land new labor contracts with Kroger, Fred Meyer

Two Teamsters union locals also OK agreements with Safeway in Washington

Russell Redman

August 3, 2021

5 Min Read
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UFCW Local 536 members last week ratified tentative agreements with Kroger's Central Division, while Teamsters Local 117 reached a tentative four-year contract deal with Fred Meyer.Kroger

The Kroger Co. has reached new labor agreements with United Food and Commercial Workers in the Kroger Central Division and with Teamsters in the Fred Meyer division.

At the Indianapolis-based Central Division, UFCW Local 536 members last week ratified tentative contract deals reached earlier in July with Kroger. The agreements for grocery and meat clerks represented by Marquette Heights, Ill.-based UFCW 536 cover more than 1,100 associates working at 13 Kroger supermarkets in Peoria, Bloomington and other cities in central Illinois.

Kroger said the Central Division will invest $11.3 million in wage increases over the course of the new three-year contracts.  

“We are pleased we could reach agreements which support our central Illinois associates and our company,” Kroger Central Division President Colleen Juergensen said in a statement. “Under the terms of the new agreements, associates will receive significant pay increases, affordable and comprehensive health care, and continued investment in our associates' pension fund.

“The new contracts come after thoughtful and productive work by both the company and the union bargaining committees,” added Juergensen, who has led Kroger’s Central Division since February 2020. “We thank our associates for ratifying the agreements and for the excellent service they provide for our customers every day.”

Related:Food 4 Less workers in California applaud new labor contract

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Teamsters Local 117’s bargaining committee came to an accord with Fred Meyer on July 30, less than two weeks after the union had authorized a strike.

The Kroger Central Division has more than 15,000 associates and over 130 stores, including supermarkets, pharmacies and fuel centers, in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Ohio.

On Friday, Tukwila, Wash.-based Teamsters Local 117 said it has reached a tentative four-year agreement with Fred Meyer covering 500 warehouse workers. Plans call for Teamsters 117 members at the Fred Meyer distribution center in Puyallup, Wash., to vote on the contract deal by the end of this week.

Teamsters 117’s bargaining committee came to an accord with Fred Meyer on July 30, following a unanimous vote by the union on July 17 to authorize a strike, which would have disrupted food distribution to 180 stores in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska, the union said. The local’s previous contract expired on July 18.

“This is a big victory for workers, and this contract meets the sacrifices these essential workers have made to carry their community throughout the pandemic,” stated John Scearcy, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters 117. “This is another strong example of why workers need and benefit from strong unions like Teamsters 117.”

A key point of contention in the negotiations was COVID-19 safety, according to Teamsters 117. The union said it asked Fred Meyer to take more aggressive steps to address COVID protection and outbreaks and added that over 100 Teamsters at the Puyallup facility believe they caught the virus in the workplace.

Related:Kroger, UFCW reinforce pension benefits for Fred Meyer, QFC workers

“From fighting the company to implement basic measures like efficient temperature checks, to our resounding strike vote, to punishing hours of bargaining, we bring this victory back to our co-workers with our head high,” commented Teamsters 117 shop steward Matt Collins, whom the union said thinks he contracted COVID-19 in the workplace last year. “We are proud to raise standards of what is a strong union contract.”

Teamsters unions OK pacts with Safeway

Teamsters Local 117’s strike authorization vote against Fred Meyer came almost the same day as the union and Teamsters Local 174 ratified new three-year contracts with Albertsons Cos.’ Safeway.

Tukwila-based Teamsters 174 said member drivers, dispatchers and recycling center workers were “on the brink of a strike” before a late-night agreement was reached with Safeway and ratified by union members on the morning of July 17. Teamsters 117 ratified its agreement with Safeway early the next morning.

Approving the new labor pacts were a group of about 175 Teamsters Local 174 members and 500 Teamsters Local 117 members, including all Safeway tractor-trailer drivers delivering groceries from Safeway’s Auburn distribution center to Safeway and Albertsons supermarkets and all warehouse workers at the Auburn, Bellevue and Kent distribution centers, as well as dispatchers and recycling center workers. Teamsters 174 said a strike by these workers would have disrupted grocery deliveries to Safeway, Albertsons and Haggen stores in western Washington as well as impacted statewide distribution of frozen and refrigerated foods — such as ice cream, dairy and soda — from the Bellevue facility.

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Teamsters Locals 174 and 117 ratified new three-year contracts with Albertsons Cos.’ Safeway almost on the same day that Teamsters 117 had voted to authorize a strike against Fred Meyer.

Teamsters 174 noted that the new contract with Safeway “addresses nearly every issue identified prior to negotiations” and includes “record-setting” wage and pension increases, vacation pay, holidays and other improvements, as well as recognition of workers’ extra efforts amid the pandemic.

“Our members at Safeway have worked longer hours over the past year than ever before, earning record profits for their employer,” Teamsters Local 174 Secretary-Treasurer Rick Hicks said in a statement. “While they were reluctant at first, Safeway management really stepped up to the plate and delivered this historic agreement that rewards our members for their hard work and sacrifices. These Teamsters have earned every dollar in this contract and every improvement to the contract language.”

Besides the wage hikes, highlights of the Safeway agreement include maintenance of “outstanding” full-family medical coverage, overtime protections, annual pension increases and a new medical plan that will slash out-of-pocket costs for retirees, Teamsters Local 117 reported.

“By now, the community is well-aware of how important these essential workers are to ensuring that food and supplies get housed and delivered to grocery stores across the Pacific Northwest,” according to Scearcy. “We appreciate Safeway’s willingness to acknowledge the indispensable contributions these workers have made for all of us.”

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About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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