Although Denver grocery stores haven't joined yet, Mile High Safeways will soon be dry in the deli, seafood and butcher sections.
Although Denver grocery stores haven't joined yet, Mile High Safeway s will soon be dry in the deli, seafood and butcher sections.As of Sunday, June 15, Safeway workers in four Colorado cities are on strike, as well as those at a Safeway workers are striking because Albertsons , Safeway ’s parent company, has not responded to the union’s requests for better pay and higher staffing at grocery stores in the state, according to the United Food & Commercial Workers Local 7, the grocery union in Colorado.
Around 7,000 workers are employed at Safeway or Albertsons stores in Colorado. For now, workers in Pueblo, Fountain and Estes Park are all on strike in addition to those at the Denver distribution center, but the union plans to add more stores to the strike until Safeway comes to the bargaining table in good faith.King Soopers Safeway workers previously had a temporary agreement with the company to extend their contracts beyond their expiration dates, which included raises and improved benefits, that the company is now refusing to honor. By voting to strike last week, the workers voided that extension.Safeway workers across Colorado have been negotiating with their employers for nine months. At this point, every previous contract has expired. Economics have been the sticking point in negotiations, according to Cordova. Safeway has proposed cuts to pension and health-care plans and put forth an idea to allocate $9 million or more from the retiree benefit fund to current worker benefits. A top priority for workers is higher staffing levels in stores; workers say low staffing creates an unsafe work environment and causes problems for customers like long lines, low stock on shelves and errant pricing. Cordova says Albertsons has been unwilling to budge on staffing., who are currently negotiating with their parent company Kroger, say they have seen the same sort of proposals. Cordova alleges the two companies have worked together to offer the same contracts so that they can both give fewer concessions to workers. In 2022, Kroger announced it would purchase Albertsons in a $24.6 billion merger — Kroger has 148 stores in Colorado and Albertsons has 105 — but the agreement was canceled in December 2024 after federal regulators and courts ruled against the merger, saying the consolidation would create an anticompetitive grocery market in the country. But Cordova argues that the companies are still negotiating as one despite suing each other over the failed merger. "Safeway needs to come back to the table and bargain in good in good faith," Cordova says."They did not prepare for a labor dispute. ...They literally thought workers were not going to strike since King Soopers struck. They thought they were going to sit this out. We are not letting them sit this out.". But Safeway workers have not authorized strikes since 1996, according to Cordova. Now the two companies are mirroring each other, so the workers plan to do the same. According to a statement from Safeway, the company plans to continue negotiating with workers, citing contract extensions that are in place. “Safeway in Colorado remains committed to productive discussions with UFCW Local 7, and we have contract extensions in place while we do so,” the company said in a statement when the workers authorized the strike. “We respect the rights of workers to engage in collective bargaining and are negotiating in good faith to achieve an agreement. Our focus remains on providing exceptional service to our customers and fostering a positive working environment for our associates.”In Denver, the Safeway distribution center near Interstate 70 is the first facility to strike. Cordova says those workers supply all of the meat that is cut and processed in stores. The deli, seafood and butcher sections of Safeway stores won't receive products while workers are on strike, she says.The Teamsters also have unionized employers who work out of the Safeway distribution facility. The Teamsters workers are not on strike, but Cordova says they have given assurances that they won't cross the Safeway workers' picket line. If that holds true, produce in Safeway stores could also be impacted as Teamsters workers are responsible for delivering produce to Safeway locations in metro Denver. Workers already gave a 72-hour warning to allow perishable items to be moved and processed, just in case. From Sunday on out, Denver's stores will no longer be receiving several grocery store staples.in February that was planned to last for two weeks, the Safeway strike has no set end date. Cordova says the workers will keep the strike going until Albertson's begins bargaining in good faith without colluding with King Soopers. Until then, more locations will be added to the strikes to apply more pressure. At this point workers in metro Denver, Boulder, Broomfield, Castle Rock, Conifer, Evergreen, Grand Junction, Idaho Springs, Parker, Salida, Steamboat Springs, Fort Morgan, Salida and Vail have all voted to authorize strikes, but haven't walked out yet. Cordova says the union has already given proper notice for all those locations to strike at any time. On Monday, June 16, workers in Colorado Springs and northern Colorado will vote to decide if they want to authorize strikes or not. Should they choose to, they could be added in time as well.Get More Coverage Like This, where she has primarily reported on news since September 2021. Her prior work experience includes contributing to Cronkite News, Arizona PBS, theand AZ Big Media. Catie holds a master's degree from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and an undergraduate degree from Regis University in Denver. 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