Strike

[catscradle]

75,000 members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union have been locked out of their jobs by these supermarket chains: Albertson's, Ralph's and Von's (Von's is owned by Safeway and Ralph's by Kroger).

Here's the shitty corporate thing going on. These stores have cut existing healthcare for their employees by 50%. Anyone hired from now on, will not get health benefits.

The operating profits for Kroger, Safeway and Albertsons over the past decade have risen ten times faster than their contrabutions to worker's healthcare.

Originally this was isolated to Southern California. It has since spread to stores in Northern California, West Virginia and Ohio.

Here's a direct link to find out about the strike from the United Food and Commercial Workers AFL-CIO - I used to belong to this union. Thankfully no one ever tried to cut our benefits when I was working for Giant Eagle in Ohio. During that time I got very ill. I would have never been able to afford my medical bills if they had cut the benefits. Most likely I never would have been able to get through school with the high costs of med bills, days lost due to an illness I couldn't treat and the over all stress of worrying =/ I wonder how many people a year have their future plans stamped out because they have no health benefits. . .

I'm boycotting these stores, writing letters, yadda, yadda - till these workers have the benefits they need and deserve. Many of you do not live in striking areas - neither do I - but the stores are chains. If they cut benefits in a few regions now, they could do it in other regions later - I'm asking people to please be conscienous where you shop. The health of many people is at stake.

Here's info if you'd like to write letters or call:


Vons and Safeway:
Customer Call Center: 1.877.723.3929 | Corporate Headquarters: 925.467.3000 | E-Mail Form

Albertsons:
Toll Free Line: 1.888.746.7252 | Corporate Headquarters: 208.395.6200 | E-MAIL absfeedback@albertsons.com

Kroger (Parent of Ralphs):
Customer Call Center: 1.866.221.4141 | Executive Officers: 513.762.4000 | E-Mail Form

Ralphs: 1.888.437.3496 | E-Mail Form

Comments

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

You would have loved a letter to the editor that I read in a Santa Ynez paper this weekend. Basically this one guy was trying to argue that those striking workers and anyone sympathizing with them needed to remember that we live in a capitalist society and "how dare those workers try to raise the cost of groceries?" (or words to that effect).

With people like that I don't even know where to begin. Probably with something like "Okay, we human beings have things called emotions..."

[catscradle.livejournal.com]

It never fails to amaze me how people will jump to the defense of a corporation over the workers it's fucking over. And the thing that really gets me is - these people usually have been fuck over themselves at some point in their lives. They just don't see it when it comes to other people.

I wonder sometimes what would happen if all your average folks started piecing it together and realizing that "Gee! We're all getting treated like crap, aren't we? I wonder what would happen if we in the meat packing industry got together with the folks in the clothing industry and. . ."