COLORADO SPRINGS, CO — It’s a big day for Kroger employees, the parent company of Kings Soopers here in Colorado Springs. They’re voting on whether to go on strike. The vote comes after what King Soopers says is their final offer—a four-dollar and a half raise over four years.
Denver King Soopers workers voted Wednesday. Colorado Springs workers vote Friday, and Pueblo employees vote Saturday. This affects more than 10,000 King Soopers employees in Colorado.
As far as why they are voting to strike…
Here’s a statement from Kim Cordova. "The workers are doing the job of two to three people because they're short staffing and they won't invest in safety," She's the president of the union, UFCW Local 7. She says they want better safety practices at work. They also want more staff in the stores.
Jessica Trowbridge, the media person at King Soopers also responded with a statement. "King Soopers remains committed to its primary focus of increasing associates' paychecks while keeping groceries affordable for customers." She says in part, that they focus on rewarding hardworking associates while keeping prices low.
We also talked to people who grocery shop at King Soopers. They say if a strike does happen, they will be shopping somewhere else.
Take A Look At What King Soopers Locations in Colorado Springs Have Union Members
Samantha Denny says “King Soopers is definitely my main grocery store. I love shopping here... I mean I guess if they strike, I would have to shop somewhere else so I wouldn’t really have a choice, but it would be upsetting obviously. But again I understand that they’re fighting for something important. I mean, this is their livelihood, so I get that.”
Another shopper, Joe Wood, says "Yeah, I might wait to see what happens. You know you know either go to Walmart or Safeway. I hope King Soopers can work it out so you know everything goes back to normal. Just maybe find a way to get the eggs to go down.”
We have our eye on this vote. We’ll let you know how it turns out as soon as we find out.
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