Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden appeared at a Boston rally held Thursday by striking Stop & Shop workers, telling the grocery workers to keep up the pressure.
“Wages have gone up very little. Productivity has gone up exponentially. And where are you sitting? The same place you’ve been before,” Biden told the workers. “We’ve got to stand together. If we do that, we can take this country back. Don’t give up. Keep it going.”
An estimated 31,000 employees of the Stop & Shop grocery chain, which is popular throughout the northeastern states, went on strike last Thursday following months of unsuccessful contract negotiations. The walkout appears to be one of the largest in recent years, according to Labor Department data.
United Food and Commercial Workers claims that the parent company of Stop & Shop, Dutch conglomerate Ahold Delhaize, is proposing cuts to the workers’ contract that would “devastate health care benefits, significantly increase health care costs, and decrease take home pay.” The changes include requiring workers to pay higher premiums for health coverage and reduced pension benefits.
Stop & Shop contends that it “continues to offer excellent health care coverage” and that employees’ shares of healthcare premiums would remain low in comparison to those of workers at other companies.
The strikers have become a cause célèbre among Democratic presidential contenders. Sen Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., delivered donuts to strikers last week.
