31,000 Stop and Shop Workers in New England Walk Off The Job

More than 31,000 retail workers recently walked off the job at Stop and Shop supermarkets across three states. This is the largest retail industry strike in the past 16 years. In fact, more than 10,000 retail workers have not struck in over 15 years. The union and supermarket chain disagreed in negotiations on health-care benefits, pensions, and Sunday premium pay.

According to typical union propaganda, Stop and Shop only proposed “drastic and unreasonable cuts to healthcare benefits and take-home pay, while replacing real customer service with more serve-yourself check out machines.”

I happen to like self-serve checkout machines; the lines are always much shorter and quicker.

Stop and Shop said that to remain competitive it needed to pass on increases in health-care costs to its workers, stop allowing new workers to receive pension benefits, and stop paying premium pay on Sundays and holidays for some workers. Stop and Shop noted that many of its competitors do not have a unionized workforce and thus can operate more nimbly, efficiently, and economically.

Matt Austin owns Austin Legal, LLC, a boutique law firm based in Ohio that limits its representation to employers dealing with labor, employment, and OSHA matters. You can reach Matt by calling him at (614) 843-3041 or emailing him at Matt@MattAustinLaborLaw.com.