Unionized Kroger workers in Indianapolis are negotiating a new labor contract with the company.
But multiple bargaining sessions haven’t led to a deal workers like. Now, workers have authorized a strike, although that doesn’t mean a strike is guaranteed.
Kroger workers are unionized through United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 700. The union, which also has members in food packing and manufacturing plants, represents about 14,000 workers in Indiana. In Kroger stores, the union represents everyone outside of management, including gas station workers.
Kroger and the union’s bargaining committee began negotiating in April and held their most recent bargaining session on June 25. The contract expired May 17.
Here’s what to know about the ongoing contract negotiations.
Does this affect Kroger stores in Indy?
Every Kroger store in the Indianapolis area is covered by the labor contract. Kroger has 24 grocery stores in Indianapolis, according to the company.
Kroger, which is headquartered in Cincinnati, recently announced plans to close 60 stores across the country over the next 18 months. UFCW Local 700 said it was informed by the company that two of those stores are in South Bend and Elkhart.
It isn’t clear if any Indianapolis stores will close. The company didn’t respond to Mirror Indy’s questions about the closures.
What does the union want?
The union’s biggest demands fall into two buckets: wages and staffing.
Workers say Kroger doesn’t give them enough hours.
“Short staffing continues to harm our stores and place added strain on workers,” Local 700 President Tracy Bartak wrote in an update to union members on June 20. “Kroger must do more than acknowledge this problem. They must commit to fixing it.”
Will the workers go on strike?
The union’s bargaining committee reached a tentative contract agreement with Kroger in May, but about 75% of union members voted against it.
By rejecting the offer by that wide of a margin, members authorized a strike.
That doesn’t mean a strike is definitely going to happen, though. Union leadership has told its members that striking is a last resort.
What is the company saying?
A spokesperson for Kroger did not respond to emailed questions from Mirror Indy.
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Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
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