Union OKs contract with Meijer, 27,000 employees at 92 Michigan supercenters

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.mlive.com/business/index.ssf/2007/10/union_oks_contract_with_meijer.html

by Keith Essenburg | The Grand Rapids Press
Friday October 12, 2007, 10:25 PM


Representatives of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 951 said Friday their members overwhelmingly approved a new four-and-a-half year agreement with Meijer Inc. that protects their pension plan, shortens workplace grievance procedures, and includes several wage increases.

Union members from across the state had until Friday to vote on the agreement, which union and Meijer officials finished hashing out last month.

Of the roughly 11,500 votes cast, 9,282 were in favor of the contract. Another 1,961 union workers voted against it.


The agreement covers nearly 27,000 employees at 92 Michigan supercenters, from meat cutters and cashiers to truck drivers and maintenance workers.

In a statement issued moments after the final ballots were counted, Marv Russow, president of UFCW 951, said the pact "reflects the needs of our members and those of Meijer ... in a time of intense competition and economic challenge in Michigan."

Russow went on to say the wage hikes included in the contract will benefit "virtually all 951- represented Meijer workers."

Contacted by phone Friday, Russow noted the new agreement did not address health care, which is covered in a separate contract between Meijer and the union that runs until 2011.

FULL story at link.