OAKLAND, CA — On Saturday, February 20, janitors who clean Northern California
Safeway supermarkets voted to ratify a tentative collective bargaining agreement with
Safeway’s janitorial services contractors ABM, Crystal, Premier, and AMS. The
agreement maintains vital healthcare and pension benefits, and raises the base wage
rate for experienced workers up to $14.05 per hour, above industry standards.
“I’m thrilled that we were finally able to reach an agreement with Safeway’s contractors
that will protect our quality jobs and keep our communities healthy,” said Zenon Angeles,
a supermarket janitor and member of the SEIU Local 1877 Executive Board. “By coming
together as a union, we were able to win a strong contract that will boost our wages,
maintain our healthcare coverage and pension, and safeguard our safety and health.”
Negotiations between SEIU United Service Workers West, Local 1877, the labor union
of more than 450 janitors who clean Northern California Safeway supermarkets, and
Safeway’s janitorial services contractors had been ongoing since September 2009.
Negotiations had grown increasingly contentious in February, and a vote on whether or
not to authorize an unfair labor practice strike over the Safeway’s contractors’
intimidation of workers was originally scheduled for February 20. But when the janitors
and Safeway’s contractors reached a tentative agreement late on Friday, February 19,
the strike vote was called off. Instead, a quorum of hundreds of janitors met to review
the tentative agreement, and the overwhelming majority voted to ratify the agreement.
The new collective bargaining agreement will substantially improve janitors’ wages and
maintain or strengthen standards for health, retirement, and other vital benefits. The
agreement includes provisions to increase wages by between 40 and 65 cents each
year until 2012, bringing the base wage rate for experienced janitors up to $14.05 per
hour. This is significantly higher than the current average wage of just $10.24 per hour.
The contract also provides for adequate healthcare benefits for janitors and their
families. The agreement also maintains the janitors’ pension fund in its current form, with
employers contributing between 30 and 50 cents to the retirement fund, per hour
worked.
Although Safeway’s contractors did not accept union proposals for “Green Cleaning”
standards including non-toxic, environmentally friendly cleaning products, the new
agreement makes important progress towards remedying unsafe and unhealthy
conditions in Safeway stores. The agreement will implement a joint labor-management solution to health and safety problems, so that janitors can raise issues such as a lack of
safety training in regular Labor-Management meetings. Under the new agreement,
Safeway’s contractors also agreed to provide information to the union regarding health
effects of the chemicals and cleaning products used in the stores, provide necessary
safety equipment as required by law, and to work with Safeway to quickly replace
malfunctioning janitorial equipment. The agreement also includes a provision to establish
a streamlined, efficient process for injured janitors to file workers’ compensation claims,
which will reduce overall costs for workers compensation.
“It’s a major positive that janitors will now be able to use the Labor-Management
partnership process to resolve health and safety issues,” said Neri Macuixtle, a janitor
and member of the Bargaining Committee. “We will also continue calling on both
Safeway and the contractors to support sustainable practices in the workplace, and
continue to push for stronger Green Cleaning standards in the future.”
The new union contract will be in effect until October 31, 2012. The janitors’ last
collective bargaining agreement expired on October 31, 2009.
Overall, the ratified agreement represents a significant protection of janitors’ benefits.
The Safeway’s contractors’ initial proposals to eliminate dental care benefits, sharply
increase the number of hours of work necessary to be eligible for healthcare coverage,
eliminate family healthcare coverage for newly-hired janitors, unilaterally take janitors out
of their pension plan, freeze wages for one year, and lower starting pay for newly hired
janitors, were dropped, as the union and Safeway’s contractors moved towards a
tentative agreement.
The new agreement also includes provisions to maintain benefits for paid vacation sick,
funeral and jury-duty leave, expand other types of unpaid leave, strengthen seniority
protections and rights, and improve rights for worker-retention during changes between
janitorial contractors. The agreement also establishes employer contributions to a
training fund for janitors, and maintains contributions for the industry-investigation fund.
The ratification of the agreement comes after a five-month struggle, in which hundreds of
janitors mobilized with rallies, demonstrations, petitions and work stoppages across the
Northern California region. More than 150 janitors in geographic areas ranging from
Salinas, Santa Rosa, Oakland, San Francisco, Stockton, to San Jose stopped work on
February 10 and 18 to protest intimidation by Safeway’s contractors, and demand a fair
union contract.