Kroger employees go on strike for better pay in Denver

Thousands of Kroger employees in the Denver area went on strike on Wednesday, demanding higher wages, better benefits and safer working conditions.

This strike comes after Kroger offered what it called its best and last offer in contract negotiations with the union representing workers at its King Soopers locations in Colorado, The Denver Post reported.

Picketing in front of stores, workers called on customers to not shop at King Soopers while the contract dispute continues. The workers received a show of support from Colorado state Sen. Chris Kolker (D), who visited the protest, according to a tweet from the union.

The collective bargaining agreement affects roughly 8,000 employees across 77 out of 151 King Soopers and City Market locations. 

In a message to union members, United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 7 said the latest offer from Kroger added “insult to injury” and argued that the proposal did not offer enough or only provided temporary measures that would diminish over time.

“Our original offer on the table was $148 million in wage increases. We raised that to $170 million this morning, which is the largest wage increase in the history of King Soopers and City Market,” King Soopers president Joe Kelley said, according to the Post.

However, UFCW Local 7 said the wage offers would allow Kroger to reduce wages over the lifetime of the contract and said the current would also allow benefits to be cut, according to the Post.

The union also criticized the company for not including enough measures to keep workers safe.

A King Soopers location in Boulder, Colo., was the site of a mass shooting last year that killed 10 people. The store is scheduled to reopen next week.

Paul Hoffmaster, a five-year employee at King Soopers, told the Post that the strike was about more than just money, expressing concerns benefits would be reduced.

“They say on the news they’re going to give us investments in 401K and all that,” he told the newspaper. “They tell you what we’re going to get. They don’t tell you what you’re going to give up.”

As the Post noted, UFCW Local 7 filed a lawsuit against King Soopers last month, claiming unfair labor practices. In response, the grocery store chain filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, making the same accusation against the labor union.

In a press release sent out on Wednesday, Kelley accused the union of “putting politics before people and preventing us from putting more money in our associates’ pockets.”