DENVER (KDVR) — On Monday, King Soopers and City Market announced a lawsuit over unfair labor practice claims against the Local 7 chapter of the United Food and Commercial Workers union.
UFCW Local 7 represents 17,000 workers in the Colorado and Wyoming area and has claimed “egregious and unrelenting unfair labor practices” against the company, leading to a widely supported strike across the Denver and Colorado Springs region.
King Soopers offered the union a $148 million investment into new wages and signing bonuses, but the union claimed the company omitted the concessions employees would have to make in order to receive the raises.
The lawsuit filed by King Soopers and City Market claims UFCW Local 7 has refused to negotiate a new contract in good faith. According to a press release from the company, UFCW Local 7 has rejected mediation services.
“After three days of refusing repeated requests to return to the negotiating table, Local 7’s Kim Cordova has now rejected a reasonable request for mediation to work together toward a contract that will put more money in our associates’ pockets. If Local 7 does not want to negotiate then they should at least have the decency to allow our associates to vote on the current proposal. Our associates should be treated fairly and transparently and should have the opportunity to decide what is best for them and their families. Right now, Local 7 is using our associates’ livelihoods as pawns in their political gamesmanship.”
Joe Kelley, King Soopers and City Market president
According to Joe Kelley, the president of King Soopers and City Market, the hope is to reach an agreement that benefits the associates while keeping groceries affordable.
The company said Local 7 has not given a date on when they will re-engage in the negotiation process, but Kim Cordova, UFCW Local 7 president, said the discussion will begin “at an appropriate time in the future.”
The union strike is set to start Wednesday at 5 a.m.