Safeway Bargaining News Flash

March 5, 2019 – Edmonton, AB.  We’re at the bargaining table right now. You’re welcome to join us. We’re in a UFCW meeting room at the Chateau Lacombe in Edmonton.

We’re unable to provide you with a comprehensive description of what’s going on for a little while as we’re immersed in our meetings. However, we thought it important that we get you a copy of the company’s proposals as soon as we could.

Yesterday, the company handed us the below document. Today, Safeway employees on the bargaining committee expressed their shock, outrage, disappointment, and disgust.  One employee stood and faced the company lawyer and said that they were becoming the slumlords of the retail food industry.

We’re going to have more to say to you, and we’re going to be distributing the union proposals as well. But we thought it a priority that you know right away what the company you work for is saying you’re worth. When you review the documents, you’ll see they’ve proposed no wage increase. In fact, what you will see are a series of takeaways that are deeply disturbing. You have worked so hard for the last few years to save this company in Alberta, and it is a very sad situation to see that this is how they choose to reward you.

You will probably see the company trying to explain this away, or divert your attention, or try to turn you on your union. But the documents attached here speak for themselves. These are the actual documents the company handed to us. We have not edited them in any way. Nor have we offered any editorial comments about their specifics. They speak for themselves.

The hard truth is the hard truth.

Full detailed company proposals

Standby for more UFCW Local 401 news flashes!

In Solidarity,

Tom Hesse
Chief Union Negotiator

April Albrecht, Joe Attwood, Michael Hughes, and Christine McMeckan
Bargaining Team Leads