Kroger, Albertsons gained upper hand with Colorado workers through unlawful pact, lawsuit claims

By Sam Silverstein
Source: Grocery Dive

Kroger and Albertsons are facing a class-action lawsuit alleging that unionized workers for the grocers suffered financial harm because Albertsons agreed not to hire workers from Kroger’s King Soopers banner during a 10-day strike against the Colorado chain in 2022.
The alleged agreement between the grocers reduced the bargaining power of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7, causing the union to accept lower wage scales for workers for both supermarket companies in Colorado, the suit claims.
The lawsuit builds on a case Colorado’s attorney general filed in February seeking to block Kroger from merging with Albertsons and claiming the companies have colluded through unlawful no-poach and non-solicitation agreements.