Talks Are Slow With Giant, Safeway
Unions Hope For New Deal By March 30

By Ylan Q. Mui
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 19, 2008

The region's two largest grocers and the unions representing their employees are negotiating a new labor contract dealing with pensions, health care and wages before the current four-year contract expires March 30.

United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 400, which with Local 27 in Baltimore represents about 23,000 workers at Giant Food and Safeway, characterized the talks as slow in a posting on its Web site this week. The union has distributed blue-and-yellow stickers for members to wear at work and created a video of union members calling for better wages and benefits.

"We are more powerful when we stand together," Giant employee Kathy Biscarr said in the video.

Safeway began accepting applications this week for temporary employees "in preparation for a possible labor dispute," according to an ad that ran in The Washington Post. A spokesman for the company would not disclose the number of people to be hired but said they would be trained to work in the event of a union strike. Giant ran a similar ad but did not mention labor issues. Both retailers said such staffing is standard during contract negotiations.

The union, on its Web site, criticized Safeway's move as heavy-handed and called the temporary employees "strikebreakers." A source close to the talks, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because negotiations are ongoing, said the union has not ruled out a strike.

The two sides have been negotiating for the past month and are expected to continue today. The chief issues include funding for the grocers' pension plans, health-care benefits for current employees and retirees, and wages. Attorney Harry Burton, lead negotiator for Giant and Safeway, declined to comment. Local 400 President Jim Lowthers did not return a phone call.

Over the weekend, Safeway distributed a letter to its employees from Steve Neibergall, eastern division president. It also launched a Web site for employees to track the negotiations.

"All of the information we provide you will be open and honest and will help you make informed decisions affecting you and your families," the letter said.

Traditional grocers across the country have tried to curtail labor costs in recent years in the face of increasing competition from nonunion chains, such as warehouse clubs and Wal-Mart. That led to the breakdown of negotiations four years ago in Southern California, where workers went on strike for almost five months, costing them their wages and the supermarkets hundreds of millions of dollars.

In Washington, talks between Giant and Safeway and the local unions were contentious, but a strike was avoided. Safeway and Giant agreed to a health-care plan in which existing employees paid no premiums. The chains also promised to increase their contributions to workers' pension plans.

The unions accepted several cost-cutting measures directed at new employees: lower hourly pay on Sundays and holidays, slower raises and higher health-care costs. After six years, however, new employees' benefits are to match those of veteran employees.

Union members are scheduled to vote on a new contract April 1 at the D.C. Armory.