Senior Editor According to the Seattle mayor’s office, the city recently partnered with UFCW 21 to vaccinate 400 of their most vulnerable members in the coming days.
The early stages of the U.S. rollout of COVID-19 vaccines has earned scant praise. That said, grocery workers in Seattle are probably more likely than most to give the effort a thumbs-up.
According to the Seattle mayor’s office, the city recently partnered with UFCW 21 to vaccinate 400 of their most vulnerable members in the coming days. The Seattle Fire Department Mobile Vaccination Teams (MVT) will vaccinate Phase 1B, Tier 1 eligible UFCW 21 grocery store workers who, due to their work environment, are at an extremely high risk of exposure to COVID-19.
Hazard pay legislation for grocery store workers in Seattle to go into effect Wednesday By Becca Savransky, SeattlePI
Eligible grocery store workers across Seattle will start receiving hazard pay beginning Wednesday after officials passed legislation last week requiring certain stores across the city to reinstate the benefit.
The legislation mandates large grocery stores in the city to pay workers an additional $4 per hour in hazard pay as the coronavirus pandemic continues to impact the region.
“A disproportionate number of people of color are essential workers, and Seattle must continue to lead the way to provide relief and respect to those that have served our community throughout this pandemic, Durkan said in a statement. Grocery store workers have continued to work every day of this challenging time and I am glad we are finally able to recognize and compensate the effort that has kept stores open and communities fed over the past year.
2020 Saw Resurgence of Strikes as a Key Tactic for Labor Around the World
Nurses of Montefiore New Rochelle Hospital are seen on strike after contract negotiations ended with no agreement in New Rochelle, New York, on December 1, 2020.
Lev Radin / Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images
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Like every other social movement in the U.S. this year, the compounding crises of 2020 proved a catalyzing force for the labor movement, compelling essential and frontline workers to join picket lines to ensure basic protections and increased pay as they continue to face disproportionate risks and increasingly perilous working conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
On December 14, several Denver area grocery stores displayed unusual light shows but the businesses weren t responsible for them. UFCW Local 7, whose members include many of those working at major supermarkets, projected images (some featuring Dr. Seuss s Grinch character) calling for a return of so-called hero pay a $2-per-hour bump given to employees during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic because of the risks they took to serve the greater public on King Soopers and Safeway outlets.
The projections were part of a two-pronged attack, and followed a letter to Kroger, owner of King Soopers and City Market stores in Colorado, that was co-signed by Vermont senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
Resurgence of COVID-19 calls for extra compensation, stronger protection, letter says
Amid a surge in U.S. coronavirus cases, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) joined with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Locals 7 and 21 in calling on The Kroger Co. to reinstitute hourly hazard pay and bolster safety measures for frontline employees.
In a letter sent Monday to Kroger Chairman and CEO Rodney McMullen, UFCW 7, UFCW 21 and Sanders (below) claimed the supermarket retailer has relaxed COVID-19 safety protocols after phasing out $2-per-hour “hero pay” for frontline workers in mid-May. The letter was signed by Sanders, UFCW Local 7 President and UFCW International Vice President Kim Cordova, and UFCW Local 21 President Faye Guenther.