LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- Three major supermarket chains said Sunday they plan to hire temporary workers to keep hundreds of stores open as more than 70,000 grocery clerks in Southern California began a strike.þþClerks at Kroger Co.'s Ralphs, Safeway Inc.'s Vons and the Albertsons grocery stores went on strike late Saturday after negotiations between union representatives and store officials broke off, with health-care coverage a key sticking point.þþOfficials with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union initially said strikers would target only Vons stores and urged the companies not to lock out workers from the others. The supermarkets, however, said a strike against one company would be considered a strike against all three.þþIn a joint statement, they said Albertsons and Ralphs would lock out employees during the dispute.þþPlans were in the works to ÿensure that stores remain open and staffed,ÿ the statement said. Sandra Calderon, a spokeswoman for Vons, said those plans include using temporary workers.þþ
Source: Chicago Tribune
