The original contract expired on March 5th, and was then extended for two weeks until midnight, March 19th.
The extension is for three weeks, until midnight April 9th. After April 9th, the extension is from day to day and can be cancelled with 72 hours notice by either party.
"The extension allows us to continue negotiations with the employer," said Mike Shimpock, spokesperson for the Southern California Grocery Workers unions.
"Our number one priority is to negotiate a fair contract for our members, and to avoid any inconvenience for consumers," he continued. "These corporations each average nearly $3 billion in profits annually. They can afford to share their windfall profits with the employees that made the profits for the markets in the first place. It's only fair. After all, Stater Bros. and Gelsons markets eliminated the two tier wage and gave employees fair wage increases. If they can do it, certainly these highly profitable corporations can too."
2006 profits for the companies that own Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons ranged from $2.3 to $3.4 billion in 2006 alone. Less than a week ago, the company that owns Vons reported a 77% increase in quarterly profits per share.
By comparison, grocery workers have gone without a wage increase for over 5 years, last getting a small hourly raise in 2002. More than half of Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons workers start at nearly the minimum wage, and have to wait up to 18 months to become eligible for health care coverage.
