A federal mediator called a 48-hour recess in the labor negotiations between Safeway, Albertsons and Fred Meyer and the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, after the Joint Labor Management committee intervened at the last minute on Wednesday.
JLM, which represents senior executives and CEOs of all major U.S. food corporations and all food industry union presidents, is trying to aid the two sides in reaching an agreement.
Both sides agreed to the recess, which will run today through Sunday.
Union spokesman Rick Sawyer said representatives will meet on Sunday at the Double Tree hotel in Springfield to vote whether to accept the employers’ proposal or to strike.
The representative for the employers, Melinda Merrill, said she does not know what the outcome is likely to be.
“It’s an unknown at this point,” she said.
No agreements have been made so far, and a strike is likely, according to employee representatives. The main issues in the conflict arise from disagreements about health care benefits, pensions and wage increases.
The employers proposed a two-tier plan with different benefits for current and future employees. The union believes this plan is not fair to new employees because they would never be able to achieve the same level of benefits as current employees.
Employers are asking all union members to pay a portion of their health care, but new employees would have to wait a longer period of time to qualify for benefits.
According to the employers’ proposal, new employees would not be able to get pension benefits until the age of 21. Currently, there is no age limit.
Employers also want to lengthen the time it takes union members to get a wage increase and give members lump-sum payments that would be five times less for full-time employees than the hourly raise they are requesting.
“Union members will not sell out the future generation,” Sawyer said.
Union members differ on whether to strike, but most support it.
East 18th Avenue Safeway deli worker and union member Paula Hunt said the possible strike and current situation in negotiations is a result of the employers’ desires.
“It’s massive corporate greed,” she said.
The UFCW 555 represents about 1,100 members in the Eugene area.
Roman Gokhman is a freelance writer for the Emerald.