Supermarkets Get Concessions; Wal-Mart Wage Gap Remains [California Grocery Strike Ends]

The Wall Street Journal ^ | Monday, March 1, 2004 | JANET ADAMY

[TroutStalker]

Even after winning significant wage and benefit concessions in a months-long labor dispute in Southern California, the nation's three largest traditional supermarket chains will carry higher employee costs than does their nemesis: Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

The contract that leaders of the United Food and Commercial Workers union agreed to put to a vote this weekend would give Kroger Co., Albertsons Inc. and Safeway Inc. the right to lower pay for new workers and limit the amount the grocers must put toward employee health insurance, according to people on both sides of the dispute who are familiar with the contract. After a two-day vote, 86% of grocery workers who cast ballots approved the contract, the union said Sunday.

[xrp]

Give it a few years, but a few of the groceries in SoCal will collapse as Wal-Mart pushes in, with lower employee costs, and runs them out of business.

[yankeedame]

Hate to be the skunk at the picnic but the fact of the matters are that:

1) No one is forced to seek employment at Wal-Mart

2) No one is forced to take a job at Wal-Mart

3) No one is forced to remain employeed by Wal-Mart

4) If conditions, wages, etc. were so unreasonable at Wal-Mart no one would do #1-3.

Wal-Mart refuses to unionize, and the union(s) will never forget or forgive this.

[steveo]

It doesn't imposes any health-care premiums on existing

Ralph Wiggam: 'me fail english? that's unpossible!'

[2banana]

Under the contract, a veteran food clerk could continue earning as much as $17.90 an hour, and a new hire could top out at $15.10 an hour

It doesn't imposes any health-care premiums on existing workers for two years, while requiring new hires to pay 20% of their premiums immediately

The UNION really stuck it to the new hires. I wonder if the new hires still will have to pay the same amount of UNION dues that the "old timers with better pay and health care coverage" do?

[babaloo]

I visited my family in the Palm Springs area during Christmas and shopped at the affected grocery stores. They were sort of a mess. You are right about WalMart's entry. I think they are building a super center in Rancho Mirage and they will be swamped with business. I am always shocked at how high the price of groceries are in that area. IIRC milk was over 4 bucks a gallon and meat is unbelievably high. I found myself shaking my head as I walked up and down the aisles.

[xrp]

I live in the Kansas City area, they have HyVees, privately owned grocery and a Super Target. Milk (my benchmark for comparing prices) at HyVee is $3.29 or higher and at Super Target it is $2.59.

[kittymyrib]

Now, why would new hires want to work at a union market and have to pay union dues, when they can work at Walmart and NOT pay union dues? Wouldn't that also make a difference in their take-home pay?

[babaloo]

I live in DSM and milk at our HyVees,Targets and Walmarts runs about $2.50 per gallon at all three although HyVee features one brand at $1.99. I am not sure of the wage diffential between KC and DSM but costs have to be at least half of what they are in SoCal. I do not know how people with families manage their grocery bills out there.

[glennaro]

The union really stuck it to all their members. The people who struck at the direction of the union leadership lost thousands of dollars and gained nearly nothing in return. In addition, the L.A. Times reported that the companies may have to close up to 100 stores because of the money they lost as a direct result of the strike. This will put thousands of union members out of work.

I makes no sense to me why these people support the anachronistic union. They should be less concerned with the new health care deductions than with the union dues forced extraction from their paychecks which the unions use to fund Democrat politicians who, when elected, raise taxes on the union members and further lower their net pay.

Never forget: The primary responsibility of the union leadership is not to help their members, rather it is to preserve the union.

[kellynla]

FYI WALMART PAYS CASHIERS AND BOX BOYS TO START IN CALIFORNIA $7.25 AN HOUR! FACT! And that is why employees are on food stamps so they can afford to buy groceries at WALMART. Your tax dollars are subsidizing the income of WALMART employees.

[xrp]

Hah, my grocery bill is around $25/week.

[xrp]

FYI WALMART PAYS CASHIERS AND BOX BOYS TO START IN CALIFORNIA $7.25 AN HOUR!

If box boys and cashiers were in higher demand, the going rate would be higher. FACT! This is what the market demands for such positions as the total worker supply for said jobs is easy to find and fill.

[kellynla]

"If box boys and cashiers were in higher demand, the going rate would be higher. FACT! This is what the market demands for such positions as the total worker supply for said jobs is easy to find and fill." ya never been to CA have ya? ROFLMAO...does the term "illegal alien" compute??? and don't give me this jive they don't hire them...cause they sell SS cards like candy in Santa Ana

[Grit]

Hah, my grocery bill is around $25/week.

Do you live on birdseed?

[Hildy]

I was told that the health care premium will be imposed in two years.

[kellynla]

and BTW you seem to have totally disregarded my point that your tax dollars are subsidizing WALMART employees with food stamps!

[G L Tirebiter]

FYI WALMART PAYS CASHIERS AND BOX BOYS TO START IN CALIFORNIA $7.25 AN HOUR! FACT!

So what? One does not stay in minimum wage jobs forever. That's why they are call "entry level" jobs.

My first such job was as a 15 year old bagger at the local A&P. I wasn't on public assistance - unless you count attending our local high school.

These bizarre arguments based on the premise that everyone earning the minimum wage is the sole breadwinner in a family and that all wages should allow for that support of a family are, to put it simply, bogus.

[xrp]

I was in Los Angeles and San Diego back in June, 2003.

[xrp]

and BTW you seem to have totally disregarded my point that your tax dollars are subsidizing WALMART employees with food stamps!

and BTW, you seem to fail to understand that this is a problem with the federal government, not Wal-Mart.