On April 14, over 47,000 members of UFCW Locals 8GS, 135, 324, 770, 1167, 1428, and 1442 who work at approximately 540 Ralphs, Albertsons, Vons, and Pavilions stores in Southern California ratified a new contract that includes significant wage increases, store safety improvements, increased health care benefits, and protected pension provisions. The deal was reached after months of negotiation and tireless advocacy by tens of thousands of California’s essential grocery workers, including a marathon 30-hour bargaining session.
Key provisions of the three-year contract include:
• Significant wage increases
• Guaranteed hour minimums
• Health care improvements
• More workers receiving benefits sooner
• Store safety improvements
• Protected pension
The seven UFCW Locals released the following statement regarding the contract ratification vote passage:
“Today, tens of thousands of essential grocery workers across Southern California have ratified a contract that is a step in the direction of securing a more promising future for themselves and their families. After more than two years of risking their lives to serve California’s communities as essential workers, reaching a fair contract with better wage increases, health care improvements, and protected pensions for these hard-working members could not have come at a more important time.”
“This contract is a concrete and direct result of the tireless work done by the members of the UFCW who stood with their co-workers for the wages and benefits they deserve. The pandemic and its deadly impact on our communities may not be over, but the essential workers who keep California’s grocery stores running have proven it is possible to secure a fair deal when driven by solidarity. This contract will change the lives of these workers and generations of grocery workers for years to come.”
