Stop & Shop, Teamsters distribution center workers reach tentative agreement

FREETOWN, Mass — A union representing Stop & Shop workers at a Massachusetts distribution center has reached a tentative agreement with the grocery chain, averting a strike.

Teamsters Local 25 and Stop & Shop reached a tentative six-year agreement, which covers more than 900 workers at the grocery chain’s distribution center in Freetown, Mass. The agreement also keeps operations going at the distribution center.

Teamsters leaders said they fought against “a nonunion, substandard company health care plan,” and members had pledged to picket if the facility were to be shut down.

“Stop & Shop tried to strong-arm our members,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien. “We fought back against Stop & Shop’s corporate greed and sent a clear message that our members will not be bullied into accepting anything less than what they are worth.”

Teamsters Local 25 leaders said this tentative contract with Stop & Shop is the “strongest contract in the supermarket industry.”

“We are proud of our members’ solidarity and commitment to remain united throughout negotiations,” said Thomas G. Mari, President of Teamsters Local 25. “The final agreement not only contained significant increases in wages and working conditions but also provided job security to more than 900 Teamsters for the foreseeable future.”

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“I am thrilled that we were able to work together on a new contract that both provides an outstanding package of wages and benefits to our associates and supports us in our strategy of improving the customer experience by reducing operating costs,” said Roger Wheeler, President of Stop & Shop.

Before agreements were reached, Connecticut State Treasurer Erick Russell, Massachusetts State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg and Rhode Island State Treasurer James Diossa sent a letter on Friday, Feb. 21, to Stop & Shop’s parent company, Ahold Delhaize, urging the company to find a solution that would benefit both the company and its workers.

“We urge Ahold Delhaize to engage in good-faith negotiations that prioritize both its workforce and its long-term corporate value. A resolution that ensures fair wages, benefits, and working conditions will not only protect your employees but will also safeguard Stop & Shop’s reputation and long-term success in our states,” the treasurers said in the joint letter to Ahold.

In 2019, an 11-day strike across 240 Stop & Shop stores shook up retail operations as United Food and Commercial Workers union members demanded better health and pension benefits and pay raises.

Leah Myers is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. She can be reached at LMyers@fox61.com

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