Over 3,000 members of UFCW Local 663 who work at 33 UNFI-owned Cub Foods stores in the Minneapolis area ratified a new contract on April 11 that strengthens wages and benefits. This ratification comes after these members authorized their bargaining committee to call for an unfair labor practice strike.
The two-year contract includes average wage raises of $2.50 to $3.50 an hour by spring of 2024, and establishes a landmark safety committee. The contract also secures wins for the part-time workers who make up the majority of the bargaining unit. In addition, a significant portion of the bargaining unit—the 300 people currently classified as retail specialists who will have their positions converted to classified assistants—were able to win the security of full-time positions.
“Raises are even bigger for more than 300 retail specialists like me, who will be converted to classified assistants,” said Sami Moll, a bargaining committee member who works at the Chanhassen Cub Foods in the deli. “Some of us will be making $5 to $8 more an hour by this time next year, which is phenomenal.”
“This year’s contract campaign was like nothing I’ve ever seen,” said Dave Mueller, who works in produce at the Uptown Cub Foods store. “I’ve been on the bargaining committee six times, and we’re so much more powerful than we ever were before. This was the most encompassing rank and file experience I’ve ever had the privilege to be a part of.”
“Promises made, promises kept!” said Souad Sami, who works in the deli at the Rockford Road Cub Foods store in Plymouth. “We’ve worked hard in the stores for many years, and at the bargaining table for months. We were able to make sure our pension and our retirement are secure.”
“This is a union of people who sacrificed beyond imagination to keep Minnesotans fed during the pandemic. It is no surprise then that these grocery workers were able to organize the most powerful contract campaign the Twin Cities grocery industry has seen in decades,” said UFCW Local 663 President Rena Wong. “The bargaining committee believes that this agreement respects, protects, and pays our members fairly. We look forward to sharing the agreement with the thousands of UFCW Local 663 members, and continuing to welcome new members who are working to organize their own workplaces.”
