CORPORATE GREED VS. HUMAN NEED
UFCW Statement on Southern California Supermarket
Bargaining
In early October, Southern
California supermarket workers voted on a contract offer from three of the
largest supermarket operators in the country.
They have been confronted with a stark
choice: give up health care benefits for not only themselves and their
families, but also, for future generations of supermarket
workers.
In unprecedented numbers,
Southern California supermarket workers turned out to vote and sent a clear
message: we will fight for affordable health
care.
They delivered a mandate to their
union that they will strike, if needed, to save health care for their families
and strike to save health care coverage for the next generation of
workers.
These workers are heroes. They
are willing to make the sacrifice to take up the fight to save health
care.
This is a fight for all Southern
California workers. It is a fight for all supermarket workers—union
and non-union—here and across the country because if these three
supersize, super-profitable, supermarket chains can cut benefits here, then
every worker is at risk.
The UFCW
announced on October 11, workers would strike one of the supermarket chains. We
would have limited our job action to a single chain, to limit the
inconvenience to our customers.
We
asked the employers to also respect our customers and not to take
retaliatory action against workers through a lock out. There should have been no
lock out.
After all, the customers are
the ones that we depend on for our jobs and the companies for their
profits.
We made every effort to avoid a
strike but, workers will not give up on health care. We are not asking for more,
we are asking to keep the benefits that we
have.
Employers’ profits have
risen 10 times faster than their hourly contribution to worker health care.
Their profits overall have gone up 91 percent since
1998.
We have contained health cares
cost. The increased costs for health care for these employers have been
significantly below the national
average.
This is a battle between
corporate greed and human need and, we are asking our communities to stand with
us. We are your friends and your neighbors. We serve you everyday in
your local supermarket. We ask for your
support.
If the supermarket giants win,
Southern California loses. These companies would drain over 328 million dollars
a year from Southern California because when they cut health care for workers,
they rip off California.
The 1.4
million member United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) is America's
neighborhood union representing workers in neighborhood grocery stores across
the country. UFCW puts dinner on the table for America's families with members
working in meatpacking and food processing. UFCW gives a voice to care with
representation for nurses, medical technicians and nursing home workers.
Posted: Sat
- November 1, 2003 at 04:52 PM