Editor’s note: King Soopers grocery workers in the Denver metro area are launching their strike today. We’re tracking the development. Check here for updates.

King Soopers President Joe Kelley says union is treating King Soopers different than its competitor

In a phone interview with the Denver Gazette, King Soopers President Joe Kelley said he was disappointed by the strike.

The company shortened hours temporarily for impacted stores and hired thousands of temporary workers through staffing agencies, other Kroger stores on non-unionized King Soopers stores.

When asked about what he’s doing to avoid strikes every time contracts end, he pointed to the union’s president Kim Cordova to improve relations, saying strikes are an extreme measure that hurt customers and delay raises for workers.

“She needs to make a decision on what she’s going to do differently,” Kelley said.

He also questioned why is the union targeting King Soopers with strikes, and not competitors, saying Safeway is also under negotiations with the union and got more extensions than King Soopers did.

“By the way, contracts ended on the same day as ours,” he said. “She’s given them unlimited extensions, and she’s sending customers their way, so it doesn’t seem like the playing field is level here.”

Pueblo stores will join strike Friday

The strikes will expand to Pueblo on Friday, union president Kim Cordova announced at a press conference on Thursday afternoon.

There are two unionized stores in the Pueblo area that will be affected, she added.

Cordova said the union has authorization to add stores in the Colorado Springs area but did not specify when it would be. She also mentioned union contracts are expiring across the Western Slope and northern Colorado. Those regions could also potentially prepare to strike in the coming weeks if no resolution is made, she said.

In Greenwood Village, some shoppers turning to apps

In Greenwood Village, more than a dozen King Soopers workers picketed outside the grocery chain’s 4910 S Yosemite St. location, asking shoppers to boycott the store until a new labor contract is agreed upon.

Organizers encouraged picketers to remain close to the front door and cheered each time a customer was turned away.

“There’s Walmart and Safeway,” the picketers chanted. “We’ve been here for you; you be here for us!”

Picketers declined to speak on the record with The Denver Gazette. A union captain on site confirmed that workers would picket 24/7 at Greenwood Village.

One shopper, Anna Green, said the strike is very unsettling and she plans to use the King Soopers mobile app to order groceries and then have them delivered to her car.

“I don’t want to engage because I just don’t understand it all,” she said.

Some Lakewood shoppers say they stand by strikers

Around 50 King Soopers employees stood outside of a Lakewood store, greeting customers as they attempted to share information about their action today.

A potential customer walked up with shopping bags before noticing where he was.

“I thought this was a Safeway. My bad,” he said before returning to his car.

The parking lot, which is usually filled throughout the day, was noticeably empty around 10 a.m. The workers said that’s a good sign.

The strikers noted there are customers entering to purchase medications from the pharmacy and the strikers said they don’t want to interfere in those cases.

“I’ve been coming to this store for five years now. They’re all my friends. I’m going to support them,” said Heather Schrader, who purchased at the store. She was unaware that they were striking and told them on the way out that she won’t come back.

“I hope they get what they need. They deserve it. They work hard here,” she said. “Their hours are sometimes atrocious, but they always support the customers. They’re really good people.”

Another customer, Leslie Levish, left the store with a single bag of medication. She said that, other than going to the pharmacy, she supports the strikes.

“I don’t know much about what they’re asking for, but as a general moral, I do believe in striking and not crossing the picket line,” Levish said. “I know these people. My husband is a federal employee. We’re getting ready for a big furlough. Of course, I support (the strike).”

Union strikes with an eye toward busy Super Bowl weekend

Grocery workers on strike are handing out flyers to customers saying, “King Soopers dropped the ball.”

“As you get ready for Super Bowl weekend and do your shopping generally, please go to Safeway stores instead of King Soopers,” the flyers said. “We are still in negotiations with Albertsons/Safeway.”

A two-week strike could potentially impact the two busiest periods of shopping for King Soopers in February.

Visits to Colorado King Soopers stores went up 19% above the February average on the Friday preceding Super Bowl Sunday last year, according to cell phone data provided by Placer.ai. Visits were up 16% on Saturday and the busiest day was Sunday, where visits were up 25%.

But another holiday also could be affected if the union and grocer don’t mend their relationship: Valentine’s Day.

It’s the busiest day in February, according to Placer.ai, as traffic is up nearly 28%.

Kroger-owned King Soopers lost a majority of customers during the 2022 strike to Albertsons-owned Safeway stores. An economic analysis done for Colorado’s lawsuit against the failed merger between Kroger and Albertsons showed that for every $100 King Soopers lost, $50 went to Safeway.

The union is calling on customers to shop at competitors instead and to move their prescriptions to other pharmacies during the strike.

Striking Denver bakers say their department is understaffed

Araceli, an assistant bakery manager at the University Hills King Soopers on Colorado Blvd., started work at 2:30 a.m. Thursday morning for her early morning shift to bake the daily products.

But by 5 a.m., she walked out as the union strike began. It’s cold outside, she said.

Temperatures in Denver were about 45 degrees when the strike began, according to data from the National Weather Service, and dipped to 30 degrees by 7 a.m. Some union leaders at stores have told workers to go strike in the sun when they start to feel too cold.

“It’s the right thing to do for everybody, you know?” Araceli said, citing understaffed stores and wanting better wages.

Her bakery manager, Stephanie was striking next to her.

“It feels like a skeleton crew but they say we’re fully staffed,” Stephanie said.

Araceli is baking half the time instead of assisting Stephanie, she added, when they could hire another baker instead to ease the team’s workload.

“I’m literally doing three people’s jobs,” Araceli said. “I’m either baking or I’m icing the donuts or packaging or doing the manager’s job when she’s not here.”

Inventory manager: Last strike was about wages, this time it’s about working conditions

Susan, an inventory manager at a Littleton store, said the last strike was about wages. This time, she said, it’s about working conditions. Susan, who said she’s worked for King Soopers for 17 years, said the workload has increased, as she’s now doing the job of three to four people. “There are so many tasks to do in a very short amount of time,” she said, adding that’s untenable. She had started working as a dolly person at King Soopers nearly two decades ago. The expectations toay, she said, “are hard to achieve.” Another picketer complained about the lack of workers at the cash registers. What that means, she said, is more work for fewer and fewer people, with repercussions for customer service.

Deli, meat counter at a Littleton King Soopers not open

A manager told The Denver Gazette that the deli and meat counters at her store are closed as a result of the strike. So is the Starbucks unit. “That’s my entire team,” she said of the workers at the picket. “I’m not mad at them.” She hopes the issue would be resolved soon, she said. “It’s a little slow today,” she added, noting the changes in the store hours as a result of the strike.

Union to picketers: Don’t talk to the media

UFCW Local 7 has instructed picketing workers not to talk to the media. At several stores, the picketing workers told reporters that they can’t talk to them. At one store, the workers said they can’t talk without a union representative. At another store, the workers gave the information number for a union representative. At this store, a union worker from California had flown here to Colorado to assist in the strikes.

Here’s what we know so far

Picketing is scheduled to begin at 5 a.m. at unionized King Soopers stores. The union said it plans to strike for two weeks.

The first picketing lines will begin in the Denver metro area spanning across Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas and Jefferson counties. Stores in Boulder and Louisville will also be included.

It’s important to note that not all King Soopers and City Market stores are fully unionized, so impacts can vary. Some stores may only have select unionized departments such as meat and deli.

How is King Soopers preparing for the strike?

Stores will stay open for business, according to the grocer.

King Soopers is planning to hire thousands of temporary workers from non-unionized stores and out-of-state stores in the Kroger network, Kelley said. He insisted they won’t replace union workers once they return from striking.

It’s a controversial move to union members who say the practice of “scabbing,” or replacing union jobs during strikes, is meant to undermine their leverage for bargaining.

What happens to affected stores?

King Soopers issued a news release Wednesday saying the impacted stores will have temporary hours.

“Impacted stores will be open from 7 a.m. – 8 p.m. daily and pharmacies at impacted locations will operate Monday – Friday from 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., (closing daily for lunch from 1-130 p.m.) and closed on Sundays.”

An exact list of impacted stores hasn’t been released by the union, but King Soopers officials said the following stores will not be affected by the strike: Bennett; Brighton; Castle Rock; Cheyenne; Colorado Springs; Confier; Erie; Firestone; Fort Collins; Greeley; Longmont; Loveland; Pueblo and Windsor.

Union leaders are asking shoppers to go to King Soopers competitors, such as Safeway.

Workers will receive a schedule of their picketing days as union president Kim Cordova told members they plan to amp up the number of stores striking over the course of the two weeks.

The union also plans to launch strikes further south along the Front Range in Colorado Springs and Pueblo, but have yet to announce any dates for those regions.

Why are workers striking?

As new contracts were under negotiation, union leaders alleged the grocer committed illegal unfair labor practices to hinder bargaining.

The accusations span from the grocer surveilling and interrogating union members during bargaining, threatening to discipline workers for wearing union clothing or accessories at work to executives not providing necessary company data for the union to make their own contract proposals.

The union also claims the grocer is gutting retiree health benefits and isn’t providing sufficient wage increases for workers.

On top of that, they also have concerns about staffing shortages straining employees.

What does King Soopers say?

King Soopers President Joe Kelley denied the allegations saying the National Labor Relations Board, which is responsible for investigating illegal labor practices, has not ruled anything yet.

He expressed frustration over the union choosing to strike a second time in three years, claiming union leaders are choosing the most extreme measure to bargain that ends up hurting customers and workers.