Safeway Pleased With Early Indication That Southern California Contract Ratified
Safeway Inc. (NYSE:SWY) today said it is pleased at the early indication that the new 2007-2011 Southern California Retail Food and Meat Agreement was ratified this evening by its Southern California Vons and Pavilions employees represented by UFCW Locals 135, 324, 770, 1036, 1167, 1428 and 1442. The company is awaiting official confirmation from the unions. The new 48-month tentative agreement will expire on March 6, 2011. The agreement has been recommended for ratification by the local unions to their members.
“I applaud the UFCW International Union, the seven Southern California UFCW locals and our employer bargaining partners for coming to agreement on a contract that benefits our employees, customers and company,” said Safeway Chairman, President and CEO Steve Burd. “This new agreement will provide employees with the best wages, benefits and working conditions in the Southern California retail market, while making certain Vons has the tools to thrive in a highly competitive environment.”
“This contract also contains some unique and groundbreaking reforms in the healthcare plan. We know from experience these changes will create an improved health plan for our employees that focuses on improving their health through prevention and wellness while simultaneously helping control escalating healthcare costs,” said Burd. “Everyone involved recognized the tangible benefits of these programs and worked together diligently to craft innovative healthcare solutions.”
Specifically, this contract creates a restructured healthcare plan that provides each employee with health reimbursement accounts (HRAs). It strongly emphasizes preventive care, wellness programs, behavior change and management of chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, smoking, high cholesterol and asthma. For example, the plan provides for 100% of preventive care measures such as mammograms, annual physicals, well-baby care, childhood immunizations, and prostate cancer screenings.
The contract was the result of six months of negotiations during which the important and complex issues surrounding healthcare, wages, pensions and other benefits were addressed using innovative solutions that benefit both employees and the company.
ABOUT SAFEWAY
Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 100 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America, based on sales. The company operates 1,740 stores in the United States and western Canada and had annual sales of $40.2 billion in 2006. Safeway supports a broad range of charitable and community programs and last year donated more than $154 million to important causes, such as cancer research, education, food banks and programs focused on assisting people with disabilities. The company’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY.