Strike Ends for Fred Meyer and QFC Workers After Union Reaches Agreement

The worker strike organized by employees at Portland-area Fred Meyer and QFC stores has come to an end after the workers' union reached an agreement with Kroger, the national company that owns both grocery chains.

In a email sent late Friday from United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555 (UFCW), who represent Kroger workers in the Pacific Northwest, a union spokesperson announced that the UFCW negotiating committee has reached a tentative agreement with Kroger that "provides significant wage increases, added workplace protections, a secure retirement, and quality healthcare."

Members of UFCW who work at Fred Meyer and QFC locations had been working without a contract for weeks, thanks to stalled negotiations with management. According to union leadership, Kroger had refused to give the union information it needs to determine whether a number of its workers were being paid according to the terms of their last contract—prompting UFCW to file an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Review Board (NLRB).

This is why the organized strike, which began Friday at 6 am, was characterized as an "unfair labor strike" as opposed to a general economic strike. The strike was planned to run a full week, but Friday's settlement limited the action to a single day.

Read more: https://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2021/12/18/37544889/strike-ends-for-fred-meyer-and-qfc-workers-after-union-reaches-agreement