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Fact Sheet
Affordable family health care is a moral issue. The fight to keep health benefits at work is a moral crusade. The men and women on the picket lines are genuine American heroes. --Danny Glover, Actor and Social Activist
The Facts
- Southern California workers at Vons (Safeway), Ralphs (Kroger), Albertsons turned out in unprecedented numbers (over 80%) and voted overwhelming (over 95%) to fight employers' demands to take away health benefits. On October 11, 2003, workers struck Vons across Southern California. Albertsons and Ralphs locked out their workers on October 12th.
- More than 70,000 UFCW members are on strike or locked out in almost 900 stores, stretching from central California to the Mexico border. The Southern California supermarket strike is the longest major strike in UFCW history.
- The employers' proposal would effectively eliminate affordable health benefits in the future. For new hires, any meaningful benefits would be cut immediately. Inadequate benefit funding for exisiting employees would lead to massive cuts or unbearable co-pays. The bottom line is that 70,00 jobs that now come with affordable family health benefits, will not have those benefits in the future.
- Southern California supermarket workers make on average about $12.50 an hour and work about 30 hours a week--about $19,500 a year.
- The supermarket giants are not responding to competitive pressure from Wal- Mart. The three chains have 60% of the market in Southern California. Even with its planned expansion, Wal-Mart will have only 1% of the California market.
- Safeway (Vons), Kroger (Ralphs) and Albertsons are Fortune 50 mega- corporations. Their profits have gone up 91% since 1998. Combined operating profits were $9.7 billion in 2002. If these companies can take away health care, then all workers are at risk. This is a fight for America's health care.
- Safeway is the strike target because the company and its CEO Steve Burd have led the attack on workers and their health benefits. Burd told the financial community that forcing Southern California workers on strike was an "investment in the future."
- Worker and consumer support remains strong. The three chains have lost more than one billion dollars in sales so far as a result of the strike/lockout.
- Across the country, picket lines, demonstrations, and rallies are targeting the employers for worker/consumer/community action. No peace, no profits.
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