[FairOpinion]

"asking their employees to "share in the cost of their health benefits" as most American workers do now."

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Exactly. In most other industries and companies, which once used to offer very generous benefits, the benefits have been cut back and employess do have to pay part of their healthcare insurance. The sign of the times. What is so special about grocery store employees?

If they don't like the job and benefits, nobody stops them from getting another job.

I think the union bosses are at fault -- they just want to exercise power, at the expense of the employees, they are supposed to represent. The workers are losing a lot more by being out of work for 2 months, than the amount of benefit loss. In other words, if they would get everything they wanted now, it probably would take years for them to break even from the two months loss of salary.

I don't have the numbers, but suppose they were expected to chip in $20/mo for their benefits. Suppose their salary is $10/hr, that's $400/week, and $3600 for the two months (9 weeks) they have been out of work, so they lost $3600 right now. I think most workers would rather effectively had made $20 less a month. -- It will take years for them to recoup that loss, IF they would get everything they want, but they won't.

[lindsay]

The unionized Safeway workers went on strike in the city where l live.The strike lasted over a year.Neither side won.The shoppers,myself included shopped for a year at the A&P grocery stores.We liked it much better then Safeway stores.The workers lost a year's wages and Safeways lost many customers that won't go back.

[rb22982]

I'm fairly content at my retail grocery store which is 37 for myself every 2 weeks or 87 for my family for health care and dental insurance. Why those morons would strike over 5 bucks a week is beyond me. They've lost far more than the cost for healthcare for the next several years.

[JonH]

The cost of a mediocre health plan in CA is probably no less than $500.00 per month. Asking the workers to pay $60.00 of the cost seems damned reasonable.

The stores will soon be replacing the strikers and working to de-certify the union. Then the real war starts.