Striking Calif. grocery workers jack up pressure

Forbes ^ | 11.24.03 | Reuters

[yonif]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Jacking up the pressure on three Southern California supermarket chains just days before Thanksgiving, striking grocery workers Monday began picketing regional distribution centers -- hoping to cut off the supply of food and other goods to the stores.

Despite plans by Teamster-represented truck drivers and employees at the distribution centers to honor the new picket lines, Albertsons Inc., Kroger Co. and Safeway Inc. said they had "contingency plans" to keep stores open.

The job action could not come at a worse time for frustrated Southern California shoppers, who have suffered through 44 days of the strike and were expected to face long lines and food shortages as they prepare for Thanksgiving.

The union earlier this month pulled picket lines from in front of Ralphs supermarkets, which are owned by Kroger, in order to put more pressure on Albertsons and Safeway, which owns the chain of Vons stores.

Barbara Maynard, a spokeswoman for the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Locals 770 and 1442, said the new pickets were not triggered by a stall in talks with a federal mediator or any particular position by the companies.

"We're just continuing to mount pressure on the three companies," she said. "This is not in response to something the companies did. It's another move in the workers' effort to save affordable health care."

The contract dispute centers on health care benefits.

In a joint statement, the three companies said the distribution centers were being picketed in a bid "to disrupt customers' holiday shopping" and vowed to stay open.

"Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons have contingency plans in place to ensure customers continue to have access to fresh produce, baked goods and other products as they prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday," the companies said in the statement.

The companies said talks and bargaining sessions with a federal mediator had broken off and that no new negotiations were scheduled.

[narby]

Democrat unions are just determined to kill the economy before the election next year.

[Defiant]

"Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons have contingency plans in place to ensure customers continue to have access to fresh produce, baked goods and other products as they prepare for the Thanksgiving holiday," the companies said in the statement.

Good. I hope we can get some replacement truckers to get food to those replacement workers. Get rid of all the deadwood at once.

[trebb]

Democrat unions are just determined to kill the economy before the election next year

Yep - and they're willing to "eat their own" in order to do it. Methinks that with FOX News, Free Republic, Rush, Sean, and others, that enough folks are getting the idea that when it comes time to vote, the Dims will be absolutely flabbergasted and unable to figure out what happened to them.

[ZGuy]

Local report - I went to an Albertson's in Simi Valley yesterday and it was PACKED with shoppers.

[ER_in_OC,CA]

I think the author's raising the possibility of "food shortages" is overblown.

Certainly, we will be inconvenienced. But if our local Ralph's, Vons/Pavillions, and Albertsons are out of food, there are MANY other choices out there. Within 10 miles of my house, I have numerous small Mexican markets, two Stater Brothers, Costco, two Trader Joe's, a couple "off-brand" supermarkets, etc.

Food shortages...LOL. If driving a few extra miles is our generation's view of a "food shortage," we're showing how spoiled we are.

Anyone with a grasp of history or someone who lived through WWII rationing would be laughing or crying at reading that one.

[ER_in_OC,CA]

My local report -- I went to my local Ralphs at 9PM last night. The store was much improved.

The store was well-stocked. The lights were all on. The service was decent. The aisles were a bit messy with pallets out, though.

My two prior post-strike trips to this Ralphs were dismal because of poor stocking of goods. Much of the produce looked horrible. The eggs were at the "buy before" date and the egg refrigerator was likely > 40-deg.

Last visit, approx 75% of the overhead lights were turned off -- creating an eerie setting that I found disturbing and irritating.

Nice to see the quality of the product improving.

[Old Professer]

A couple more days of this and those Mexican green onions are going to start looking pretty good.

[Old Professer]

Where do you live in Simi, I moved from N. Tracy Ave in 1984.

I've got a good friend who lives on Grafton.

[thinktwice]

Jacking up the pressure on three Southern California supermarket chains

Seems to me like those five-weeks-without-paycheck folks aren't being too wise -- a private property struck shut can end up staying shut.

[GalaxieFiveHundred]

At our regular shopping hole, a Pavilions in Palos Verdes, the picketeers make it look more like a company picnic or a potluck than a strike. A lot of food, potables and camaraderie on display. Oh yeah, and a LOT of expectorated sunflower seed carcasses, making the sidewalk look all the world like a guano covered coastal tor. The strikers pay very little attention to the ebb and flow of customers who,
in turn, seem to be getting used to ignoring the picnickers too.

[WhatNot]

Read Later

[kaktuskid]

Apparently Kroger is supplying its SoCal stores from its Phoenix Fry's warehouse..there are a bunch of Ralphs and Food4Less trailers in their truck yard.(The Phoenix warehouse is non-union)

[It's me]

Something changed yesterday. So far during the stike, the picketers stood along the entrance of the store or at the corner, waving and yelling.

Yesterday I had to walk the gauntlet! The picketers made two lines so the shopper had to walk a path of picketers through the front door and, another as the shopper left. They tried to intimidate but it didn't work. I just said "Good morning," as I walked into the store with my head held high and made eye contact. Actually, one of the picketers had to look away.

Now to hear that the Teamsters are not trucking in the food. This should be interesting!

[cmsgop]

I hope it spreads to the Seattle Area

[Poohbah]

Yesterday I had to walk the gauntlet! The picketers made two lines so the shopper had to walk a path of picketers through the front door and, another as the shopper left. They tried to intimidate but it didn't work. I just said "Good morning," as I walked into the store with my head held high and made eye contact. Actually, one of the picketers had to look away.

Same thing here. One picketer even said, "Bad things have been known to happen to folks who shop here."

I put on my best psycho look (I have a pretty good one) and said, "Well, I'm buying some fava beans and a nice Chianti, so I think I'll muddle through."

The picketer decided that he wasn't going to win this round...

[hattend]

Jacking up the pressure on three Southern California supermarket chains just days before Thanksgiving, striking grocery workers Monday began picketing regional distribution centers -- hoping to cut off the supply of food and other goods to the stores.

Way to get the shoppers on your side, dudes! WooHoo!

morons

[Skywalk]

Why would you hope for that? I live in Seattle and I've known people who work at various stores that had a grocery component or QFC and Safeway.

Nor would I want to deal with that mess.

So why would you want that to happen?

[Wheee The People]

"Bad things have been known to happen to folks who shop here."

Once, at some stike, a few union picketers were walking around putting flyers on windshields of parked cars by lifting up the wiperblade and shoving the flyer underneath. As I went towards the store, two goons were working their way up nearer to my car.

As I passed the union twerp nearest me, I said outloud: "If anyone touches my wiperblade, I'm gonna come back and kick your a$$" The 20 something kid gave me a startled look and I continued on. He didn't know what car was mine, but when I came out the union slackers were gone, and the whole rest of the row of cars was untouched. LOL

[stayout]

Yeserday I went to a nearby Albertson's. The strikers there were easy to ignore. It will be interesting if they try to "ramp up" their presence though gauntlet-type devices. Around where I live, any such tactics will backfire.

Contrary to what the news article says, this strike is not about "healthcare," it's about the imminent arrival of Wal-Mart supercenters and the downward pressure that puts on union wages. Because of that I believe the supermarket chains believe their very existence is at stake and thus they have more willpower to outlast the employees.

Parenthetically, I thought secondary boycotts (such as what the Teamsters now plan on doing) are illegal.