UFCW 21 PRESS ADVISORY
For Immediate Release: December 9, 2020  -- 6 PM
Contact: Tom Geiger, 206-604-3421

Outbreak at Burien Fred Meyer and other Stores Raise Levels of Concerns for Essential Workers and Shoppers

WHO:   Top officers of UFCW 21 and members from the store tell our story. We will be joined by Teamsters 38.

WHAT: Online ZOOM press conference to raise concerns, present the facts, and propose solutions to make shoppers and workers safer. We are calling on grocery stores to immediately put these better protocols in place and enforce them, and we are calling on government agencies to better ensure this takes place. We will take questions from the press.

WHEN:  Thursday, December 10 at 9:30 AM Pacific

IF YOU MISSED THE CALL: You can watch a complete recording of the press conference here. There is also a recording available for download here.

Background: Early in the pandemic there appeared to be a willingness by grocery store chains to better prioritize safety with the looming pandemic and change the way of doing business. Workers’ wages were raised by $2/hour which at least helped a little to make people working in the store feel a bit more appreciated. Increased staff was scheduled to handle the additional work of sanitization, cleaning carts, wiping down check-out stands as well as to allow for workers to rest, take more frequent breaks and wash hands more often. Even with those changes, serious problems persisted with dire consequences as members got worn out and some contracted COVID 19.

Unfortunately, by early summer, even as social restrictions were eased and more people were shopping, it had become clear that as grocery store sales were increasing, as revenues and profits went up, and as stock holder dividend pay outs were made, the grocery store chains’ practices to protect workers and shoppers slipped backward:

       -    workers’ pay was cut by $2/hour

       -    workers reported fewer staff to cover shifts

       -    mask requirement orders were not strictly enforced by management

       -    lax enforcement of standards to limit the number of shoppers in the store is resulting in crowded stores and insufficient social distancing

       -    reduced cleaning and other practices that would help clean and disinfect stores

       -    recently, the problems have only gotten worse.

UFCW 21 represents over 46,000 workers in grocery store, retail, health care and other industry jobs across the state of Washington.