DENVER — After two days of voting, King Soopers employees across Colorado have authorized a strike, the UFCW Local 7 announced late Thursday night.
The vote comes after King Soopers and UFCW Local 7, which represents more than 10,000 King Soopers employees across the state, failed to reach an agreement on a new contract. The original contract expired at 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 16.
- Watch our previous coverage in the video player below
Workers in the Denver metro, Boulder, Broomfield and Parker units authorized the unfair labor practice (ULP) strike on Thursday. According to the union, 95% of workers in the Denver Meat Bargaining Unit and 96% of workers in the Denver Retail Bargaining Unit voted to strike.
Workers in the Colorado Springs and Pueblo units will vote on the strike on Friday and Saturday.
“There are multiple Unfair Labor Practice charges we have filed against King Soopers over the last several months. These range from illegal intimidation of workers by the employer to the employer’s failure to provide needed information on staffing to allow for the union to prepare a comprehensive proposal to resolve the staffing crisis in King Soopers’ stores,” said UFCW Local 7 President Kim Cordova in a statement. “Kroger negotiators have illegally insisted on robbing retiree health care benefits to fund wage increases for workers today. Sadly, this Company’s targeting of fixed-income retirees and other vulnerable populations only compounds its history of targeting consumers with predatory pricing.”
Prior to the contract expiration, Joe Kelley, the president of King Soopers/ City Market, told Denver7 he was doing everything he could to avoid a strike.
"We've had 13 sessions with Local 7, and although we've given them our proposal back on December 4 — a very, we think, aggressive, comprehensive offer, increase in wages, increase in pension, maintaining our health care plans for our associates — unfortunately, they're stalling, and we don't understand why," Kelley said at the time.
The timing of the strike and impacted locations will be announced at a later date, according to UFCW Local 7. In a social media post, the union told its members to continue to report to work until further notice.
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.