Kroger Roanoke Bargaining Campaign Heats Up

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)UFCW Local 400 members working for Kroger in the Roanoke area are mobilizing for a strong, fair collective bargaining agreement, joining with their Local 400 colleagues working for Kroger in Richmond, the Tidewater area and West Virginia, as well as a diverse coalition of community allies. The current Kroger Roanoke contract expires on March 30. “Kroger is a large, growing and profitable company thanks to the hard work and productivity of UFCW members,” said Local 400 President Mark P. Federici. “It dominates most of the markets it’s in. And it’s expanding throughout Virginia. It’s time for Kroger to do right by our members—the workers who are making that expansion possible,” he said. With allies like the Virginia State Conference NAACP already pledging to stand with Local 400’s Kroger members, “We are very grateful to the NAACP for its strong support,” said Local 400 Secretary-Treasurer LaVoris “Mikki” Harris. “Together, Local 400 and our community allies are making clear to Kroger management that it needs to offer our members a fair contract or else it risks alienating its customers and the communities it serves.” - adapted from a longer report on the UFCW 400 website; click here for latest updates on the campaign.