Union, Stop & Shop tangle on contract

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

SPRINGFIELD - Negotiations are continuing between Stop & Shop and a disenchanted employee union that maintains the profitable company is "pleading poverty" by offering a contract devoid of raises for the next three years.

Meanwhile, a company representative vows that "a positive conclusion" will be reached by the time the current contract expires next week.

Officials from the supermarket chain sat down with local union members in Springfield Tuesday afternoon in an attempt to hash out the final details on a new contract. The existing contract expires on Feb. 20.

The regional supermarket's estimated 36,000 employees are represented by five separate local unions that meet and negotiate with corporate representatives individually. Jeffrey Jones, member of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1459 Bargaining Committee, which represents workers in western Massachusetts, said displeasure with the company's current offer is universal across all five unions.

"The major stumbling block with our negotiations is that you have a highly profitable company that had one of its biggest banner years in terms of profit, and it is turning around and pleading poverty with its workers at the bargaining table," said Jones, who works at the Hadley Stop & Shop.

Stop & Shop's opening offer, Jones said, would provide no new raises for three years, the duration of the contract, as well as no bonuses to employees during the first year of the agreement. The company will distribute bonuses ranging from $100 to $700 in the contract's second and third years, depending on the employee tenure and position with the company.

"I would say our meeting today offered more movement and discussion than there was at our meeting two weeks ago, but there are significant differences between both sides," Jones said, "but we will continue to negotiate until we reach something we're happy with."

Despite hitting snags during the first month of negotiations, the company remains optimistic that both sides will settle upon a compromise before the current contract expires, said Faith Weiner, the company's director of public affairs.

"These contract discussions have been ongoing for a couple of weeks now, and we as a company are totally committed to working with our union members at the bargaining table, and to bringing these negotiations to a positive conclusion," Weiner said.

Stop & Shop/Giant-Landover is owned by Ahold USA, a subsidiary of a Dutch company, Royal Ahold. In 2004, the company was formed by a merger of Giant Food and Stop & Shop, and is one of the largest supermarket chains on the East Coast. The company operates stores throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, New York and New Jersey.

According to the Ahold Web site, net sales at Stop & Shop/Giant-Landover increased 4.6 percent to $17.9 billion in 2009.

Stop & Shop's Hampshire County locations include stores in Belchertown, Hadley and Northampton. Last month, Easthampton's Planning Board approved an application to build a new supermarket and attached retail space on Northampton Street.

Corporate representatives, Jones said, will meet again today with members of UFCW Local 919, representing employees at stores in Connecticut. UFCW Local 1459, he said, will reconvene for an unscheduled future negotiation session once both sides have had a chance to review counterproposals exchanged at Tuesday's meeting.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.