Posts Categorized: Grocery

The UFCW continues to advocate for the rights of our members during the COVID-19 cornonavirus outbreak, including applauding pro-worker policies that are implemented by state leaders and employers during this crisis.

State Leaders Stand With Grocery Workers

On March 19, the UFCW praised leaders in Minnesota, Michigan, and Vermont for recognizing the critical work being done by grocery workers in their states. All have designated grocery workers as first responders during the outbreak, similar to health care workers. As a result, UFCW members working in grocery stores in these states will now have access to free childcare.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz issued a directive as part of an order for “Care for Children of Families of Emergency Workers,” which instructs closed schools to continue to provide care for children of emergency personnel who are “critical to the response of COVID-19.” Under the order, grocery workers are considered “essential tier 2 workers” and would be covered.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order to expand the capacity for childcare services for health care workers, first responders, and other members of the essential workforce during the coronavirus crisis. This expands the essential workforce to include grocery workers who are helping to provide essential supplies and goods during the outbreak.

Vermont is developing a plan to reimburse private childcare centers for providing care to essential workers, including grocery store workers who are now considered essential employees during the outbreak.

“UFCW members in grocery and retail stores across the country are working around the clock to make sure that families have the food and supplies they need,” said UFCW International Marc Perrone in a statement. “We applaud Minnesota, Michigan, and Vermont for recognizing that these workers are on the front lines, providing an essential service to their communities.”

UFCW Members in Grocery Stores Get Pay Increase, Essential Benefits

On March 21, the UFCW applauded Stop & Shop for giving over 70,000 Stop & Shop and Peapod employees across New England, New York and New Jersey, who are represented by our union, a 10 percent increase in pay during the coronavirus outbreak. Workers will also receive two additional weeks of paid leave if they become sick.

The International and UFCW Locals have been negotiating with employers across the country to recognize how hard grocery workers are working to provide necessary food and supplies to their communities during the coronavirus pandemic.

As a result of these efforts, the UFCW and Safeway announced that Safeway would provide a $2.00 per hour increase in pay for its grocery workers across the country during the outbreak.

In California, UFCW Locals applauded Stater Bros. Markets for implementing a $2.00 per hour pay raise to its workers. The raise will apply to all hourly employees over the course of four weeks beginning March 23.

In Missouri, UFCW Local Union 655 secured a deal for grocery workers at Schnucks, Dierbergs, and Straubs to waive all copays for coronavirus testing, maintain pay for those who become sick, and expand access to telemedicine with zero out-of-pocket costs.

You can learn more about what the UFCW is doing to help our members during this global pandemic here.

In response to the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, the UFCW is calling on Congress and state governors to designate our members in the grocery, retail and food processing sectors as first responders and mandate that these workers have at least two weeks of paid leave.

In a letter to Local Presidents, UFCW International President Marc Perrone said:

Keeping our members healthy and safe on the job is our first priority, and paid leave is essential to achieving that goal. Our members in grocery, retail, and food processing are working tirelessly every day to keep our communities calm and ensure families have the food and supplies they need.

It is long past time for Congress and business leaders to step up to ensure every worker has access to paid leave. But partisan gridlock in Washington and inaction from business leaders has made it clear that we must continue to make our voices heard and pressure leaders at both the federal and state level to act.

Today, I am asking each of you to call on your state’s governor and members of Congress to recognize the essential work that our members are doing on the front lines of this outbreak by designating them as first responders. With this designation, we are also asking elected leaders to mandate that each of these workers be provided with at least two weeks of paid leave. This will ensure that our members can continue to serve their communities without having to choose between their health and their paycheck.

On March 15, Perrone condemned Congress for passing a coronavirus relief bill that fails to provide real relief to millions of American workers in the grocery, retail, and food processing industries.

Perrone’s statement reads as follows:

“We are in the middle of a national crisis, and America’s grocery, retail, and food processing workers are on the front lines. These workers must be protected. It is unacceptable that Congress is proposing a bill that fails to cover 80 percent of the workforce. Even worse, the bill’s paid leave protections were gutted as a result of pressure from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which represents giant corporations like Amazon and Walmart.

“Our country’s grocery, retail, and food processing workers are working tirelessly during this outbreak to help keep calm and ensure families get the food and supplies they need. We need these workers to stay healthy more than ever before, but this flawed legislation will force them to choose between their health and work. In the middle of a pandemic, such poor policy making is unacceptable and outrageous. Both parties must put people and public health first.

“We are urging Republicans and Democrats to work together to fix this broken bill and pass real protections, including two week paid sick leave, immediately.”

On March 11, the UFCW called on President Trump and members of Congress to develop and implement policies that address the economic impact of the new coronavirus on America’s workforce and ensure that workers – salaried and hourly – do not have to choose between their health and making ends meet during a global pandemic.

Top policy priorities the UFCW is calling on elected leaders to consider as part of any package to address the economic impact of the coronavirus include:

• At least two weeks of paid sick leave for all workers;
• Extension of unemployment benefits for workers temporarily laid off or whose work hours have been disrupted;
• Protection against unfair termination or discrimination for those suspected of being exposed to the coronavirus.

In the March 11 letter to President Trump and elected leaders, Perrone said the following:

Nearly 80 million American workers – or 59 percent of the entire U.S. workforce – are hourly employees who only get paid for the hours they work. As the financial impact of the coronavirus is felt across every community, these hard-working men and women are on the front lines.

I am urging each of our nation’s elected leaders to develop immediate policies that ensure that workers – salaried and hourly – do not have to choose between work and their health. These policies should not only protect workers against financial loss (from loss of hours or job loss), but should further ensure that workers seek out immediate medical attention if they feel sick or believe they have been exposed to the coronavirus.

Now, more than ever, it is time that we all focus on what matters most – protecting our families, our communities, and this nation.

You can read the entire letter here.