45,000 Strike-Ready Grocery Workers Weigh Next Move As Negotiators Make Major Announcement

The union representing more than 45,000 workers at Southern California's largest grocery stores has reached a tentative deal with the parent companies of Ralphs, Albertsons, Pavilions and Vons, the union announced Wednesday. The deal comes as the union was preparing for a possible strike after months of stalled progress in contract talks.

"This victory wouldn't have been possible without the power of our collective action," reads a statement from the United Food and Commercial Workers' union negotiating committee. "We stood strong against the companies' disrespect and made it clear that we were ready to fight for the contract we deserve. Today proves that when workers stand together, we win."

Patch has reached out to Kroger — which owns Ralph — and Albertons, the parent company of Vons and Pavilions.

The union cover workers at grocery stores owned by Kroger and Albertsons in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, San Diego, Ventura, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. In the meantime, negotiations are ongoing between those companies and the unions representing grocery employees in Northern California. Strike authorization votes for that group of workers are scheduled for next week, labor leaders announced Wednesday.

The SoCal unions last month said 90% of their membership voted to authorize the strike in an election that was scheduled amid stalled contract negotiations between the labor groups and the grocery giants, the Orange County register reported.

Grocery Workers Rising held a week of "practice strikes" and rallies last month.

The SoCal labor dispute is one of many unfolding concurrently across the country — tens of thousands of additional grocery store workers have been readying to strike against Kroger and Albertsons after other recent authorization votes.

In Colorado, grocery workers have been on strike for two weeks: Employees from 43 Albertsons-owned stores and one distribution center in Denver have walked off the job, according to Colorado Public Radio.

The same group of SoCal grocery workers went on strike or were locked out in 2003 as part of an action that lasted for over four months in what was the longest and largest supermarket strike in U.S. history. Consumers who crossed the picket lines found half-empty shelves as they did their Thanksgiving and Christmas shopping at Albertsons and Ralphs. The dispute led the chains to lose a combined $1.5 billion in sales, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The union has said it was seeking "living wages, affordable healthcare benefits, a reliable pension (and) more staffing and better working conditions for a better customer experience."

Union members approved a three-year contract in 2022 after a threatened strike, including wage increases of $4.25 per hour for most workers while some classifications received higher pay raises.

After Wednesday's announcement, it was unclear when union members would hold a ratification vote. Union officials said details of the tentative agreement would be shared with union members during upcoming meetings.

City News Service contributed to this report.