LABOR: Grocers, UFCW freeze the clock
The contract covering most of the employees at Southern California’s three largest supermarket chains will be extended indefinitely while store executives and union leaders continue to work out a new deal, sources said.
The contract between 60,000 members of the United Food & Commercial Workers and Albertsons, Vons and Ralphs expired Sunday. On Monday, March 3, a union spokesman confirmed that the grocery crews will still be covered by that contract while the union and the three chains continue negotiating.
This is a similar situation to the last two contract cycles, in 2007 and 2011, when the talks continued for months after the formal expiration date, said Todd Conger, communications director of Local 324 of UFCW, which represents Orange County workers. Seven locals spread out from the Central Valley to the Mexican border are affected by these talks.
Conger said in an email that the next negotiating session will be Friday, followed by other rounds of talks on March 21 and March 28.
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