Posts tagged Kroger
Ohio Kroger Employee Slams UFCW and Kroger with Federal Charges for Illegally Seizing Money from Paycheck
March 21, 2024 // Carroll’s charges explain that the form UFCW union bosses forced him to sign is an illegal “dual purpose” membership form, which seeks only one employee signature for authorization of both union membership and dues deductions. Federal labor law requires that any authorization for union dues deductions be voluntary and separate from a union membership application. Additionally, Supreme Court precedents like General Motors v. NLRB recognize the right of workers to refrain from union membership.
Union reaches tentative contract at 38 Kroger stores in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio
March 11, 2024 // Bargainers for a union representing workers at 38 Kroger stores in West Virginia and two other states reached a tentative agreement with the grocery chain on a contract Thursday. The announcement came a week after members of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 400 rejected a previous contract offer and voted to authorize a strike.
How the Kroger-Albertsons merger could impact union workers, if it happens
March 5, 2024 // Antitrust experts have said that if the FTC lawsuit derails the merger, it could set a new precedent. It could also help cement the power of unions in the grocery industry and enable them to organize other workplaces. Perhaps more importantly, it goes beyond the more immediate concerns associated with a merger—such as layoffs—and raises broader questions about the long-term effects of undermining the right to strike for unionized workers. “I think it shows an innovative and creative approach,” Lieberwitz says. “The FTC’s concerns are, of course, broader, but this is a response that looks at the ways in which unionized workforces are essential to the welfare of labor and the labor market.”
Busted: Kroger Worker’s Card Illegally Altered to ‘Authorize’ Forced Dues
August 2, 2023 // UFCW’s violation of Haefner’s rights is not an isolated incident. In Pennsylvania, Foundation staff attorneys are also representing Giant Eagle supermarket cashier Josiah Leonatti, who charges UFCW Local 1776KS union officials with refusing to accommodate his religious objections to union membership (see page 3). King Soopers grocery employees from Colorado are also receiving free legal aid from Foundation staff attorneys in opposing illegal UFCW strike fines, some of which are as high as about $4,000 per worker. “Jessica Haefner knew her rights under Texas’ popular Right to Work law and actively asserted them, yet UFCW union officials still brazenly took her money against her will,” commented National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix.
Dallas-Based Danone North America Employee Slams Union with Federal Charges for Illegally Seizing Money from Pay
July 12, 2023 // Alex Botello, a Dallas-based employee of food manufacturer Danone North America, has hit the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 540 union with federal charges after union officials illegally seized union dues from his paycheck. Botello filed his charges at Region 16 of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in Dallas with free legal aid from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. Botello’s charge says that UFCW bosses rebuffed or ignored his two attempts to revoke a dues checkoff authorization. Botello maintains that the union’s actions violate his rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), which is supposed to protect American private sector workers’ right to refrain from union activity.
Corrupt Cappuccinos? Unions Looking to Organize Coffee Shops Aren’t Giving Workers the Whole Story
June 19, 2023 // If union leaders are sometimes keeping money for themselves, they don’t seem to be spreading the wealth. In 2020, UFCW Local 400 issued a statement that workers should be prepared to strike against the supermarket chain Kroger. But hidden in the details of the statement was the fact that the national headquarters of the union would only pay workers $100 a week after the first eight days of striking. By the end of 2020, the union paid nearly double for hotels ($1,003,755) than on strike benefits for workers ($574,173). While UFCW Local 400 members would have struggled financially if a strike took place, the union had nearly $90 million in on hand cash by the end of 2020.
Will The Union for Kroger and Safeway’s Workers Torpedo the Supermarket Giants’ Merger?
May 8, 2023 // The UFCW has been skeptical of the merger since it was announced last year. It released a statement in November that it “would oppose any merger that undermines the wages, jobs, benefits, and security of Kroger and Albertsons workers. We have repeatedly called on both Kroger and Albertsons to be fully transparent about this merger and to provide the information that every UFCW Local and member deserves. Our members have already sacrificed much over these many years, and they need to have a comprehensive understanding about what this deal means for them, their families, and the communities they serve.”
Oakland County Employee Slams Union with Federal Charges Over Illegal Seizure of Dues
May 4, 2023 // On April 26, Kroger employee Roger Cornett charged UFCW union officials with illegally seizing union dues from his paycheck. According to his charge, Cornett was presented with a “union membership application” form to complete during an employee orientation. The form indicated that signing it would authorize both union membership and dues deductions. Cornett’s charge says the form violates federal labor law because of its “dual purpose” nature, as the law requires any authorization for union dues deductions to be voluntary and separate from a union membership application. Cornett attempted to resign his union membership and revoke his dues deduction authorization around March 8. He successfully resigned his membership, but the union refused to stop deducting dues from Cornett’s paycheck, alleging that Cornett could only exercise his right to stop dues deductions within a tiny “window period” enforced by union officials.
Workers protest ‘grocery monopoly’ merger of Kroger and Albertsons
April 7, 2023 // Dozens of local grocery workers gathered at the Lakewood Ralphs store Thursday to protest the proposed merger between Kroger and Albertsons Companies, which they say will result in store closures, layoffs and higher prices for customers. UFCW locals represent more than 100,000 Kroger and Albertsons employees in 11 states and D.C. The merger could put upward of 5,750 unionized employees out of work, leaders estimate. Over 100 organizations have created a coalition to “Stop the Merger,” which is calling on the Federal Trade Commission to block the joining of the two grocery giants. “It is critical that we remain strong and united to protect workers, customers, food suppliers and communities from the disastrous effect of this merger,” Local 324 President Andrea Zinder said during the event, adding that closures would increase food deserts locally and across Southern California. “Customers who already pinch pennies to afford groceries for their families will see even higher prices. We can’t let that happen.”
Houston-Area Kroger Employee Slams UFCW Union with Federal Charges for Seizing Union Dues Using Altered Union Card
February 22, 2023 // On August 22, 2022, Haefner attended a mandatory orientation meeting during which she was required to listen to a UFCW agent, her charges state. The UFCW agent passed out a union membership application and a dues checkoff on a single form that he claimed was mandatory for attendees to complete. Another piece of onboarding literature stated that Kroger management had the “opinion that you should participate and be active in the Union.” When Haefner asked about how she could exercise her right to refrain from joining the union or paying union dues, the union agent instructed Haefner to write “$0” in the field marked “union dues” on the form. Texas’ Right to Work law protects Haefner’s right to abstain from union membership and dues payment. Haefner followed these instructions, but later found out that union dues were coming out of her wages, her charges say. Haefner quickly obtained a copy of the form that Kroger and UFCW officials based their dues deductions on, and discovered that the “$0” she had written in the union dues field had been replaced with an amount of several dollars to induce dues deductions from her paycheck.