Agreement secures pension plan, increases hours for Part-Timers 

12/23/2013: United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1500 members from Stop & Shop and King Kullen Supermarket overwhelmingly ratified new collective bargaining agreements with their employers.  The new  collective bargaining agreement covers over 8,000 men and women across metropolitan New York for  14-months, dating retroactively on September 29, 2013 through December 6, 2014. 

Throughout the over three-month negotiation process, high cost mandates from the Affordable Care Act were often noted as the most difficult hurdle to overcome.  “Both negotiating committees did an excellent job.  We were able to come under compliance with Affordable Care Act mandates and still achieve affordable coverage for Full-Timers with no paycheck deductions, and maintain dental, vision and affordable health coverage for Part-Timers,” said UFCW Local 1500 President, Bruce Both, “While many retail companies like Trader Joe’s, Home Depot and Walgreen’s have cut health insurance for their part-time workers and pushed them to inferior plans on exchanges, our contracts secured affordable health plans for all workers,” Both concluded.

The agreement also secured all employees’ pension plans, increased hours for all part-timers, and provided two wage increases over 14-months to all employees.

Due to the short length of the agreement, we are have already began the process of mobilizing members at both Stop & Shop and King Kullen in preparation for negotiations in the coming months.  Now is the time to make an impact on our next contract.  What made a difference in this agreement the complete solidarity of our union.  Let's take this momentum into 2014 and negotiate an even better agreement.  

The previous agreement with Stop & Shop expired on Sept. 28, 2013 and was extended twice until November 2, 2013. Since then, 6,000 New York Stop & Shop workers from the East End of Long Island to Rhinebeck, in upstate New York, have been working without a contract.

The previous collective bargaining agreement with King Kullen Supermarket expired on Sept. 28th and was extended four-times, the latest extension was set to expire on Saturday, December 21, 2013, before a tentative agreement was reached on December 18, 2013.