The three remaining local unions representing Stop & Shop workers voted Sunday to authorize a strike, which comes more than two weeks after the two sides failed to renegotiate a new labor contract.
Members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 919, based in Farmington, voted against the Mass.-based supermaket’s latest contract offer and in favor of a strike authorization on Sunday at the Hartford Hilton Hotel on Trumbull Street.
Locals 1459 (Springfield) and 328 (Providence) also voted to strike this weekend and Locals 1445 (Dedham) and 371 (Westport) authorized similar terms in recent weeks.
UFCW has not yet declared an official strike.
UFCW, which represents 31,000 Stop & Shop workers in New England, began negotiating a new labor contract with the grocery retailer, owned by Netherlands-based Ahold, in January, but discussions fell apart just days before the workers’ three-year agreement expired on Feb. 23.
The union said it’s rejected several Stop & Shop offers they say would make “drastic cuts to workers’ take-home pay, health care and retirement security.”
“Our members have spoken and are unified in doing what’s right for our stores, customers, and communities,” the union said in a statement Monday. “The next round of negotiations will be critical in determining what direction we take.”
UFCW will begin labor negotiations again on Wednesday and Thursday, officials said.
Stop & Shop workers last went on strike in 1988.
