August 2024

To The Kroger Company,

We, the undersigned elected officials in the State of Oregon, urge the Kroger Company to settle its negotiations with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555 with all deliberate speed and spare Oregon workers and families any further disturbance.

As you know, UFCW 555 has called for an unfair labor practices strike based on what is described as Kroger’s throttling of information during current negotiations as well as a refusal to process grievances.  Additionally, earlier this year UFCW 555 was one of the few (if not the only) labor unions to support the Kroger-Albertsons merger — a position that has now been reversed.

It is not our intention to re-litigate the specifics of any disagreements; suffice to say, it sadly appears that a once-promising confluence of interests has been diverted into posturing that is helpful to neither UFCW 555’s workers nor to Kroger’s customers.  And regardless of one’s position on the merger, we are disappointed to see that such goodwill has been squandered.

As recently as late June, Kroger issued a press release lauding its skyrocketing dividend rates for shareholders: “Kroger's quarterly dividend has grown at a 13.5% compounded annual growth rate since it was reinstated in 2006. This marks the 18th consecutive year of dividend increases. The company continues to expect, subject to board approval, an increasing dividend over time.” (The Kroger Co, June 27, 2024.)  We genuinely appreciate Kroger’s financial success and hope that our grocery industry continues to thrive.

Yet at the bargaining table, Kroger seems to portray itself as unable to financially address regional wage disparities or to make reasonable investments in retirement or healthcare benefits that would help its employees maintain a standard of living without having to rely on publicly-financed assistance now or in the future.  We are concerned that in fighting over relatively small amounts at the bargaining table, Kroger is missing the much larger value that could be leveraged with the kind of labor-management partnership it is actively rebuffing.

Fred Meyer stores, the flagship Kroger brand in Oregon, have been an iconic part of this state for 102 years.  It would be a disappointment and a tragedy for the brand to be damaged as a result of being “penny wise and pound foolish.”

We ask that you resolve this disagreement with haste.

Thank you.