Stop & Shop Workers Ready To Strike If No Deal This Week
A negotiator for 43,000 Stop & Shop workers in Southern New England said they're ready to strike next Sunday if talks with the company fail to produce a deal this week.
Rick Charette, president of Local 1445, one of the five bargaining units involved in the talks, said the unions presented the company another offer Saturday, March 3, and that both sides are set to meet on Thursday.
Charette said if both sides can come up with a package that union negotiators feel is fair, they are ready to recommend it next Sunday to the members of the United Food and Commercial Workers locals that are negotiating as a group.
If not, Charette said workers would be ready to strike next Sunday.
"We're booking hotels for next Sunday," Charette said. "We'll either have a contract on Sunday or we'll be on the street on Sunday."
A spokeswoman for Stop & Shop said the unions presented "comprehensive and complicated proposals" that the company needs time to review before returning to negotiations on Thursday.
"Progress continues to be made during these negotiations but a few difficult issues remain," said Stop & Shop spokeswoman Faith Weiner
She said the unions agreed not to strike as negotiations continued and that Stop & Shop remains hopeful an agreement can be reached.
Charette said the top issues remain health care, pensions and wages.
Stop & Shop, owned by the Dutch conglomerate Royal Ahold NV, is negotiating with the UFCW's Local 1445, covering workers in eastern and central Massachusetts; Local 328, covering Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts; Local 1459, covering western Massachusetts; and two units representing Connecticut workers, locals 371 and 919.
The locals represent workers at 231 stores. Workers in New York, New Jersey and New Hampshire are covered under separate contracts.
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