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Cub workers announce historic strike at 33 grocery stores ahead of Easter weekend [1]
['Max Nesterak', 'More From Author', '- April']
Date: 2023-04
As many as 3,000 workers at 33 Cub grocery stores across the Twin Cities say they will go on strike for the first time this week as they seek higher wages after three grueling years on the frontlines of the pandemic that were a boon to grocery stores’ bottom lines.
The workers, who are unionized with UFCW Local 663, say they will strike at the franchise locations owned by Rhode Island-based UNFI starting at 5:30 a.m. on Friday and won’t return to work until Monday morning. The strike won’t affect operations at the other 46 other Cub locations which are owned by other companies.
“It’s painful. It’s hurtful. It’s disrespectful what the company is doing to us,” said Cub employee Sue Sami after a news conference on Wednesday announcing the strike outside a Cub location in Maple Grove.
Sami said she lived in her garage during part of the pandemic because her friend with stage 4 cancer was staying with her and she was afraid she could unknowingly spread COVID-19.
“And still I did everything the company wanted me to do. But now we’re asking for just a fair raise. We’re not asking for a whole lot, and they come back with very insulting responses,” Sami said.
The strike is technically two days long because workers aren’t required to work on Easter, and union workers say they will choose not to work.
Workers and leaders at UNFI, which bought the stores five years ago from SuperValu, have been in negotiations since January. After their labor contract expired last month, workers held rallies in and around stores to draw attention to their demands.
While the two sides have reached agreements on health care and pension benefits as well as additional security measures in stores, they remain far apart on wages and paid time off.
The union is asking for $4 an hour raise over the next two years for full-time workers and between $2.50-$3 an hour raises during that time for part-time employees, who make up the majority of Cub’s workforce.
UNFI has countered with $2.75 an hour raises for full-time workers and a new timeline for raises for part-time employees that would mean many workers would go years without seeing a pay bump. The union wants part-time workers to continue getting incremental pay raises every six months.
The union also wants pay raises for long-time workers if the company hires new employees with less experience at a higher rate. The national labor shortage has pushed up starting wages, which has led to many new hires earning more than more veteran workers. The agreement would not retroactively boost veteran workers’ pay, however.
In a statement shared by an UNFI spokesperson, the company said it was disappointed in the strike authorization vote, noting it has proposed historic wage increases.
“In the even there is a strike, we are prepared to implement contingency plans to ensure the continued availability of the products and services our guests have come to count on from Cub,” the statement said.
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[1] Url:
https://minnesotareformer.com/briefs/cub-workers-announce-historic-strike-at-33-grocery-stores-ahead-of-easter-weekend/
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