Monthly Archives: April 2020

UFCW Local 135 has been auditing stores and facilities in San Diego and Imperial counties in California since mid-April with the goal of keeping our members safe during the outbreak.

Armed with clipboards and audit forms, UFCW Local 135 representatives and organizers have been working together to monitor 250 stores and facilities covering approximately 12,400 members who work at Ralphs, Vons, Albertsons, Gelsons and Stater Bros. grocery stores, Rite Aid and CVS stores, ApotheKare and MedMen cannabis facilities, and Kaiser Permanente medical facilities.

UFCW Local 135 representatives and organizers stand at store and facility entrances to monitor whether customers are wearing masks, as well as whether stores and facilities are limiting customers and controlling crowds. The representatives and organizers also monitor whether our members have the personal protective equipment needed to stay safe and healthy, access to sanitizers and the ability to wash their hands every 30 minutes, and whether breakrooms have been set up to comply with social distancing requirements.

“Our members were being unnecessarily exposed to the virus and the audits forced management to comply with local laws, guidelines, and policies put in place to protect our members,” said UFCW Local 135 President Todd Walters.

Locals interested in auditing stores can find a COVID-19 Safety Audit Form here.

Every year on April 28, the UFCW joins labor unions and other groups in the U.S. and around the world to observe Workers’ Memorial Day so that we may remember those who have suffered and died on the job, and renew and reinvigorate our efforts to ensure safe jobs for all people.

The COVID-19 coronavirus has made safety and health in the workplace a national issue. To protect our members during this outbreak, the UFCW is working with state and federal leaders to develop immediate policies that address our members’ personal and economic health. Our union has been meeting with our largest employers to safeguard our members’ pay and benefits and minimize our members’ exposure to the coronavirus. The UFCW is also working with local unions to designate our members as “first responders” to ensure they have immediate access to testing and additional protections they need to be able to do their jobs, and coordinating with local, state, and federal authorities about the impact any new coronavirus policies could or may have on our members and employer operations. You can learn more about what our union is doing to protect our members during this outbreak here.

Last week, the UFCW launched #ShopSmart, a new national campaign that encourages American grocery shoppers to take specific actions, such as wearing a mask inside stores, with the goal of protecting both workers and customers. This new nationwide public safety effort is in response to the growing number of food and grocery workers who are becoming exposed to the coronavirus and the direct threat this growing outbreak poses to our nation’s food supply. You can learn more about the campaign here.

A Workers’ Memorial Day toolkit developed by the AFL-CIO is available here. If your local is attending or hosting an event to observe Workers’ Memorial Day, please share that information, along with photos, with Julie Anderson at janderson@ufcw.org.