Processing Your Payment

Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.

March 2, 2022

Unions approve new Stop & Shop contract

HBJ Photo | Joe Cooper The Stop & Shop in Cromwell at 195 West St.
By Zachary Vasile

Unionized Stop & Shop workers this week approved a new four-year contract with their employer that union leadership says will deliver “historic” wage increases and benefits.

Stop & Shop employees represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers locals 371 and 919 — numbering nearly 10,000 across Connecticut and western Massachusetts — voted “overwhelmingly” to lock in the new deal, which includes hourly wage increases of up to $4 for every member with at least six months on the job, according to union officials.

The contract also sets increased starting rates — $17.50 for new full-time workers, $15 for part-time — boosts pay for department heads and managers, increases certain health insurance benefits, fully funds the company’s pension plan and guarantees a one-time “appreciation bonus” of $500 for full-time staff and $250 for part-time workers.

“It is a testament to the hard work of our members and the support of customers that we were able to secure this strong contract that will deliver higher wages, protect and expand benefits and provide members with what they have earned and deserved while working through the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mark Espinosa, president of UFCW Local 919, which is based in Farmington.

The agreement rules out the possibility of a strike over pay and benefits, which neither the company nor the unions were likely anxious to repeat after a strike three years ago that shuttered supermarkets for over a week and drew national attention.

The 2019 strike, which involved workers from across Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, started after unionized workers rejected a proposed contract that would have reduced certain forms of premium pay and increased healthcare costs to members. It ended after 11 days.

The UFCW locals and Stop & Shop clashed again in 2020 when the retailer discontinued “hero pay” bonuses, but the situation did not spiral into a work stoppage.

Sign up for Enews

Most Recent

Most Recent

0 Comments

Order a PDF