Posts Categorized: Grocery

On Jan. 5, the UFCW condemned a new report that Albertsons plans to fire grocery delivery drivers at its Vons and Pavilions stores in California. The news comes as California confronts rapidly spiraling COVID-19 outbreaks across the state with hospitals overwhelmed by virus infections and millions of families relying on these essential grocery drivers to protect access to the food they need during this crisis.

“All across California, Vons and Pavilions grocery workers have been bravely serving on the frontlines since the pandemic began, putting their own health at risk to ensure Californians have the food they need during this crisis,” said UFCW International President Marc Perrone in a statement. “Now, with COVID-19 outbreaks spiraling out of control and overwhelming hospitals across California, it is stunning that Albertsons would fire these courageous and hard-working men and women keeping our food supply secure.” 

“For seniors, high-risk individuals, and countless more who are quarantining, Vons and Pavilions grocery delivery drivers have been a trusted and crucial lifeline, providing access to food for some of the most vulnerable Californians,” Perrone added. “Exploiting the passage of Prop. 22 to destroy the good-paying jobs of these dedicated frontline workers, in the middle of this public health crisis, is simply wrong.  As the union for grocery workers across California, the UFCW is calling on Albertsons to immediately halt these plans and to put the health of their customers first by protecting the jobs of these brave essential workers at a time when our communities need them most.”

The UFCW recently applauded the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendation to prioritize essential workers for COVID-19 vaccine access in the next round of distribution. The UFCW said the CDC move is a critical first step, but made clear that governors in all 50 states must expedite vaccine distribution and guarantee access for essential workers. On the NBC TODAY Show, UFCW International President Marc Perrone highlighted the dangers frontline workers continue to face during this pandemic. 

The UFCW recently announced that among our union’s members across the country, there have already been at least 363 frontline worker COVID-19 deaths and over 63,000 frontline workers infected or exposed to the virus. Specifically, there have been 116 grocery worker COVID-19 deaths and 20,750 grocery workers have been infected or exposed to the virus. In the meatpacking industry, there have been 130 COVID-19 deaths and 20,600 meatpacking workers have been infected or exposed to the virus.

“The CDC move to prioritize essential workers for the COVID vaccine is a critical first step, but governors in all 50 states must act to expedite distribution and guarantee free access to the vaccine for these 30 million American workers on the frontlines,” Perrone said in a statement. “America’s essential workers are bravely putting themselves in harm’s way in grocery stores and meatpacking plants to feed our families. Many of these workers are serving our communities without hazard pay after company cuts, despite the growing health risks from recent spikes in COVID-19 cases. With new COVID-19 outbreaks in grocery stores and other frontline businesses, hundreds of these essential workers have already died and thousands more are infected daily as they help to keep our food supply secure.”

“As the largest union for America’s essential workers in food and retail, the UFCW is calling on CEOs in these industries to immediately work with governors to guarantee access to the vaccine for their frontline employees,” Perrone added. “These businesses must also provide a paid holiday to all of their employees who receive the vaccine. With the economic crisis hurting so many families, no worker should have to choose between a paycheck and getting the vaccine that will protect their health.”

You can view the NBC TODAY show interview here.