Strike Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Kroger Employees Approve Strike Vote In Three States

Workers at 38 Kroger grocery stores in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio have voted to go on strike. Whether they do or not is dependent on further negotiations with the company.

Updated on Friday, March 1, 2024 at 4 p.m.

In a statement, Kroger said: “We are disappointed that our offer was rejected by UFCW Local 400 members present during the vote. And we understand that our associates and customers are best served by the company and union returning to the bargaining table.

Thanks in large part to the involvement of U.S. Senator Joe Manchin and the Federal Mediation Conciliation Services, the parties will resume contract negotiations and we are pleased to do so. The company and union will meet to continue discussions toward finding common ground on areas of concern.

We are hopeful that we can work together to reach a fully recommended tentative agreement that is a win for associates and helps to keep groceries affordable for the communities we serve.”

Updated on Friday, March 1, 2024 at 3 p.m.

United Food & Commercial Workers Local 400 Union announced at 2:30 p.m. Friday that it will resume talks with the company “in hopes of reaching an agreement.” The union also plans to hold a series of rallies at select stores on March 11 where they will announce the next steps they plan to take.

The union said, for now, they will continue to work as normal and all Kroger stores in the three-state area will remain open.

Original Story

Workers at 38 Kroger grocery stores in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio have voted to go on strike. Whether they do or not is dependent on further negotiations with the company.

United Food & Commercial Workers Local 400 Union announced Friday that Kroger union members have voted in favor of authorizing a strike. The union is cautious to say they are not on strike yet, but the bargaining committee can call a strike at any moment.

Employees in select stores voted 1,375–214 (87 percent) to reject the company’s contract proposal and 1,347–229 (85 percent) to authorize a strike.

“This vote has sent a powerful message to Kroger that they must do better if they expect us to ratify a contract,” explained the union’s bargaining committee in its announcement to members. “Now, we are ready to sit down with the company and negotiate an agreement that we can recommend for ratification. If not, we are ready to continue to do whatever it takes to get a fair contract. By sticking together, we will win.”

If it takes place, the strike would involve approximately 3,000 workers.

In a statement, the Kroger company said that Kroger Mid-Atlantic stores in the three states are open for business and serving customers despite UFCW Local 400’s announcement of a strike authorization.

“Despite our proposed historical investment of $300 million in associate wages and health care in West Virginia, our offer was not ratified. Our associates are the heart of Kroger, and we respect and value their hard work,” said Lori Raya, Kroger Mid-Atlantic division president. “Our proposal would put more money in every associate’s paycheck and preserve high-quality healthcare at 72 percent less than the average healthcare expense for West Virginia families. We remain dedicated to finding common ground and extend an open invitation to UFCW Local 400 for further dialogue.”

U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., issued a statement on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that: “I greatly value the diligent work every Kroger team member performs in West Virginia and the indispensable role Kroger stores and their employees fill in our communities. I encourage all parties to come back to the negotiating table as soon as possible to preserve jobs and benefits and keep these essential stories operational and thriving.”

The Mid-Atlantic Division operates more than 100 stores in Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio. Based in Richmond, Virginia, the Mid-Atlantic Division employs about 15,000 associates.

United Food & Commercial Workers Local 400 is led by President Mark Federici and represents 35,000 members working in the grocery, retail, health care, food processing, service and other industries in Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

The regional stores included in the potential collective bargaining agreement include:

West Virginia:

Kroger #668, Box 1264, Mt. Gay, WV 25637
Kroger #708, McGraw & Main Streets, Ripley, WV 25271
Kroger #714, 350 Patterson Dr, Morgantown, WV 26505
Kroger #722, PO Box 2609, Rt 4 & 20, South Buckhannon, WV 26201
Kroger #725, 1439 MacCorkle Ave SW, St Albans, WV 25177
Kroger #730, 450 11th St, Elkins, WV 26241
Kroger #734, 518 Park Center US Rt 60, Rainelle, WV 25962
Kroger #739, 2908 State St, Gassaway , WV 26624
Kroger #743, 308 Stokes Dr, Hinton, WV 25951
Kroger #752, 2007 East 7th St, Parkersburg, WV 26101
Kroger #753, 930 Division St, Parkersburg, WV 26101
Kroger #754, 10635 MacCorkle Ave SE, Marmet, WV 25315
Kroger #755, 1851 Earl Core Rd, Morgantown, WV 26505
Kroger #763, 5450 Big Tyler Rd, Charleston, WV 25312
Kroger #765, 180 Red Oak Shop Ctr, Ronceverte, WV 24970
Kroger #768, 981 Dunbar Village, Dunbar, WV 25064
Kroger #769, #5 Riverwalk Mall, South Charleston, WV 25303
Kroger #770, 151 Beaver Plaza , PO Box 579, Beaver, WV 25813
Kroger #772, 5717 MacCorkle Ave. SE, Charleston, WV 25304
Kroger #774, 102 Emily Dr, Clarksburg, WV 26301
Kroger #778, 500 Delaware Ave, Charleston, WV 25302
Kroger #780, 411 Mall Rd, Oak Hill, WV 25901
Kroger #782, 19 7th Ave , Huntington, WV 25701
Kroger #785, 1100 Fledder John Rd, Charleston, WV 25314
Kroger #788, 6360 US Route 60, Barboursville, WV 25504
Kroger #790, 133 Beckley Crossing, Beckley, WV 25802
Kroger #792, 2627 5th Ave, Huntington, WV 25702
Kroger #794, 101 Great Teays Blvd, Scott Depot, WV 25560
Kroger #805, 1734 Harper Rd, Beckley, WV 25801
Kroger #807, 223 The Crossing Shop Center, Elkview, WV 25071
Kroger #813, 500 Suncrest Town Center, Morgantown, WV 26505
Kroger #817, PO Box 1209 Rt 85 Hopkins Rd, Danville, WV 25053

Ohio:

Kroger #776, 40 Acme St, Marietta, OH 45750
Kroger #781, 6306 State Rt 7, Proctorville, OH 45669
Kroger #799, 1008 Washington Blvd, Belpre, OH 45714
Kroger #800, 401 Matthew St, Marietta, OH 45750

Kentucky:

Kroger #783, 711 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Ashland, KY 41101
Kroger #796, 370 Diedrick Blvd, Ashland, KY 41101

Kroger Faces Strike Possibility With Union Vote

Kroger union members working at 38 stores in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio will vote later this week on a new contract and potential work stoppage.

The union’s bargaining committee has unanimously recommended members reject Kroger’s latest offer and vote in favor of authorizing a strike.

The workers are members of United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400 Union. Voting will take place in select stores Wednesday and Thursday. Results will be announced on Friday.

If the proposed contract is rejected and a strike authorization vote passes, the committee will be empowered to call a strike at a time of its choosing. Workers will not be on strike immediately.

The potential work stoppage could affect approximately 3,000 workers across the three states.

In a separate statement, Kroger said it had presented the union with its final offer. It indicated the investment will be worth about $300 million in wages and benefits.

Kroger said this offer increases some wages up to 26.4 percent over the term of the contract.

“Our associates are the heartbeat of our company, and we are committed to investing in their future,” said Lori Raya, president of Kroger Mid-Atlantic. “This offer invests more than $300 million in incremental wage increases.”

According to the statement, every West Virginia associate under the collective bargaining agreement will receive a substantial pay increase with many associates seeing increases of up to $2 per hour in their base rate.

In related news, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sued to block a proposed merger between Kroger and Albertsons to form the nation’s largest grocery chain, saying the $24.6 billion deal would eliminate competition and lead to higher prices for millions of Americans.

The FTC filed an administrative complaint against the companies Monday, which will be considered by an administrative law judge at the agency. It also filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court in Oregon requesting a temporary injunction blocking the merger. That lawsuit was joined by the attorneys general of eight states and the District of Columbia.

Kroger and Albertsons, two of the nation’s largest grocers, agreed to merge in October 2022. The companies said a merger would help them better compete with Walmart, Amazon, Costco and other big rivals. Together, Kroger and Albertsons would control around 13 percent of the U.S. grocery market; Walmart controls 22 percent, according to J.P. Morgan analyst Ken Goldman.

The regional stores included in the potential collective bargaining agreement include:

West Virginia:

Kroger #668, Box 1264, Mt. Gay, WV 25637
Kroger #708, McGraw & Main Streets, Ripley, WV 25271
Kroger #714, 350 Patterson Dr, Morgantown, WV 26505
Kroger #722, PO Box 2609, Rt 4 & 20, South Buckhannon, WV 26201
Kroger #725, 1439 MacCorkle Ave SW, St Albans, WV 25177
Kroger #730, 450 11th St, Elkins, WV 26241
Kroger #734, 518 Park Center US Rt 60, Rainelle, WV 25962
Kroger #739, 2908 State St, Gassaway , WV 26624
Kroger #743, 308 Stokes Dr, Hinton, WV 25951
Kroger #752, 2007 East 7th St, Parkersburg, WV 26101
Kroger #753, 930 Division St, Parkersburg, WV 26101
Kroger #754, 10635 MacCorkle Ave SE, Marmet, WV 25315
Kroger #755, 1851 Earl Core Rd, Morgantown, WV 26505
Kroger #763, 5450 Big Tyler Rd, Charleston, WV 25312
Kroger #765, 180 Red Oak Shop Ctr, Ronceverte, WV 24970
Kroger #768, 981 Dunbar Village, Dunbar, WV 25064
Kroger #769, #5 Riverwalk Mall, South Charleston, WV 25303
Kroger #770, 151 Beaver Plaza , PO Box 579, Beaver, WV 25813
Kroger #772, 5717 MacCorkle Ave. SE, Charleston, WV 25304
Kroger #774, 102 Emily Dr, Clarksburg, WV 26301
Kroger #778, 500 Delaware Ave, Charleston, WV 25302
Kroger #780, 411 Mall Rd, Oak Hill, WV 25901
Kroger #782, 19 7th Ave , Huntington, WV 25701
Kroger #785, 1100 Fledder John Rd, Charleston, WV 25314
Kroger #788, 6360 US Route 60, Barboursville, WV 25504
Kroger #790, 133 Beckley Crossing, Beckley, WV 25802
Kroger #792, 2627 5th Ave, Huntington, WV 25702
Kroger #794, 101 Great Teays Blvd, Scott Depot, WV 25560
Kroger #805, 1734 Harper Rd, Beckley, WV 25801
Kroger #807, 223 The Crossing Shop Center, Elkview, WV 25071
Kroger #813, 500 Suncrest Town Center, Morgantown, WV 26505
Kroger #817, PO Box 1209 Rt 85 Hopkins Rd, Danville, WV 25053

Ohio:

Kroger #776, 40 Acme St, Marietta, OH 45750
Kroger #781, 6306 State Rt 7, Proctorville, OH 45669
Kroger #799, 1008 Washington Blvd, Belpre, OH 45714
Kroger #800, 401 Matthew St, Marietta, OH 45750

Kentucky:

Kroger #783, 711 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Ashland, KY 41101
Kroger #796, 370 Diedrick Blvd, Ashland, KY 41101

GM Union Agreement Could Put Martinsburg Facility Back To Work

Though it wasn’t official Monday, various news organizations reported a tentative agreement between GM and the United Auto Workers.

A tentative agreement between General Motors and its workers union could put an Eastern Panhandle facility back to work.

GM and the United Auto Workers reached a tentative deal on Monday to end a nearly six week strike that idled a distribution center in Martinsburg.

The GM deal is expected to be similar to ones reached with Ford and Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler.

About 100 employees in Martinsburg have been part of the strike for five weeks.

Workers at all three companies would have to ratify any agreement, which is expected to include a pay increase and more generous retirement contributions.

GM’s largest plant in North America, in Spring Hill, Tennessee, joined the strike on Saturday.

Teamsters Strike Against Coca-Cola

Workers are picketing in St. Albans, Bluefield, Logan, Parkersburg and Clarksburg and are supported by other Teamsters locals who have set up picket lines across the state.

Members of the Teamsters Local 175 are striking against Coca-Cola over the company’s alleged refusal to compromise.

Workers are picketing in St. Albans, Bluefield, Logan, Parkersburg and Clarksburg and are supported by other Teamsters locals who have set up picket lines across the state.

Teamsters Local 175 President Ken Hall said the company won’t compromise on several grievance issues and employees have been without a contract for more than a week.

He accuses Coca-Cola of backtracking on signed agreements, including one over health insurance.

“After signing off on that language within an hour, their attorney called and said, ‘We can’t agree to that now. We have a person in our Charlotte office who doesn’t agree,’” Hall said. “We’d negotiated for over a week, it’s not like someone tricked them, they’re represented by council.”

Hall said Coca-Cola is trying to take away work from their members.

Last month workers rejected a contract offer after the company reached an agreement with the gas station chain Sheetz to use its warehouses and employees to transport products to their convenience stores.

“They want to direct ship their product from one of their bottling stores in somewhere like Roanoke, Virginia or Charlotte, North Carolina,” Hall said. “They want to direct ship it to a warehouse that’s owned by Sheetz and eliminate our drivers who go there, check to see what their order is, put their drinks on the shelves and merchandise it. They want to eliminate what they’re paying our drivers which will eventually result in layoffs. It’s bizarre.”

Hall said his experience with Coca-Cola’s competitor, Pepsi, is just the opposite.

“They don’t want to do that and they’re not doing that,” Hall said. “And they sell more drinks in West Virginia, so I think they have some idea of how to negotiate.”

Hall explained that the last time workers went on strike against Coca-Cola the volume of lost sales was high enough that two years later the company was still struggling to recover its numbers.

“This company’s mentality is unbelievable,” Hall said. “And part of that is driven, I think, that prior to them acquiring the West Virginia operation in the late 80s, they had maybe 100 unionized employees out of 4,000 and that was in Alabama. So they’re not accustomed to working with unions, frankly they despise unions, so every so often they decide, ‘We’re just going to take you on.’ So far they have not been very successful at it.”

Coca-Cola declined a request for an interview with West Virginia Public Broadcasting but in a statement said the company is disappointed the union initiated a strike.

“We’re disappointed the union decided to take our teammates out on strike but remain committed to working with them on an equitable resolution. We have a solid plan in place to continue serving our customers.”

W.Va. Amtrak Stations Set To Reopen Friday Following Labor Agreement

Pending the contract’s final approval, rail workers won the right to attend appointments like doctors’ visits and family emergencies without punishment from their employers. Workers will also earn a 24 percent wage increase through 2024.

Rail companies and union leaders reached a tentative agreement Thursday preventing a nationwide strike.

Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a statement following the agreement, “Collective bargaining works. The labor movement works. And we know through lifetimes of experience and unbelievable sacrifice, Teamsters across America’s railroads work harder than anyone.”

Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC) trains run by the Maryland Department of Transportation faced suspension due to the labor conflict. MARC trains that run from Martinsburg into Washington, D.C. run on tracks owned by CSX Transportation.

Long-haul Amtrak trains across the U.S. were previously suspended in anticipation of the potential strike. These include the Capitol Limited, which stops in Martinsburg and Harpers Ferry, and Cardinal, which stops in the New River Gorge, Charleston and Huntington.

“This tentative agreement will keep our trains moving, stations bustling, and employees proudly serving customers as we move them across this great country,” Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner said in a statement.

An advisory notice by Amtrak says they are “working to quickly restore canceled trains and reaching out directly to impacted customers.”

Eastern Panhandle Rail Transit, Amtrak Set For Suspension During Nationwide Strike

The two largest railroad unions in the country, comprising a total of 57,000 workers, are set to go on strike Friday, prompting a nationwide rail shutdown and a logistics crisis. Some transit services, mostly in and around the Eastern Panhandle, could also be affected.

The dispute between the railroad companies and unions is over attendance policies that punish workers from attending important appointments like doctors’ visits or family emergencies.

The Maryland Department of Transportation’s (MDOT) MARC trains run on rails owned by CSX Transportation, one of the largest railroad companies in the U.S. CSX’s Brunswick Line, which runs MARC trains from Martinsburg to Washington, D.C., could end up suspending service starting Friday.

Information provided by the MDOT to West Virginia Public Broadcasting says the agency recommends passengers find alternate travel options, with recommendations posted on their website.

Amtrak also announced long-distance commuter routes based around the Washington region would be suspended as of Thursday morning.

This includes the Capitol Limited, which runs from D.C. to Chicago and includes stops in Martinsburg and Harpers Ferry. Amtrak’s Cardinal, which stops in the New River Gorge, Charleston and Huntington, will also be affected.

These are the latest changes announced since other long-distance Amtrak suspensions were made elsewhere in the nation beginning Monday, with some services in the Northeast Corridor, where Amtrak owns the tracks, still set to continue.