Of the latter, the Vons pharmacy is shut down but all prescription needs are being referred to Seeber’s Pharmacy on West Harvard Boulevard, according to information supplied by Vons Santa Paula.Santa Paula Vons workers walked over a week ago when the union and the major markets - Vons-Pavilion, Ralphs and Albertsons - couldn’t reach an agreement after months of negotiations.The United Food & Commercial Workers, representing an array of 70,000 grocery workers across the state, called for the strike. The union decided that workers would rotate the walkouts by chains to minimize disruption to the consumer but Ralphs and Albertsons retaliated by locking out union workers. The strike affects 859 stores throughout California.Grocers are not budging on their demand that workers pay $5 a week more for individual and $10 to $15 a week for family health care insurance, which no longer would cover dental and vision. The union said the request is ludicrous when the supermarkets are seeing record profits of over 90 percent from last year. Although the insurance premium request seems small, it is not the only issue, especially to clerks who have seen their hours cut over the years; most clerks now only work part-time.Reduced pension benefits and the two-tier system of salaries and benefits are also on the negotiation table.
SPPD: Strike confrontations at Vons lead to complaints
October 22, 2003
Santa Paula News
The strike of grocery workers for the most part is keeping shoppers out of Vons, but there have been some confrontations between shoppers and picketers, according to a Santa Paula Police Department spokesman.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesThe strike of grocery workers for the most part is keeping shoppers out of Vons, but there have been some confrontations between shoppers and picketers, according to a Santa Paula Police Department spokesman.“Nothing major,” has been reported, said SPPD Commander Mark Trimble. “We have the usual people that get into the verbal things but so far it’s been minor.”On Oct. 13th a person reported that they had been verbally harassed as they tried to enter Vons and another complaint to police centered on a dispute that involved an allegation of a vehicle being blocked by a strike supporter.“There have been some minor traffic jams,” in front of the store as drivers slow down to talk to picketers or pause to honk, said Cmdr. Trimble.Santa Paula police officers were dispatched to the shopping center - located on the 500 block of W. Main Street - to keep an eye on things when the strike first began. “We had officers sit there on and off for the first couple of days and officers are now patrolling the area on a regular basis, but everybody has been pretty good on both sides,” noted Cmdr. Trimble.Vons is also home to a branch of Wells Fargo Bank and a pharmacy, causing complications for those supporting the strikers but needing bank services or to refill prescriptions.
