If you are a Local 400 member working at Kroger under the West Virginia contract or a member working as a meat cutter under the Roanoke contract, there is an important upcoming vote on changes to your pension plan that will impact your retirement. This vote and agreement is separate from the upcoming vote on the tentative agreement for all Kroger Roanoke members and the upcoming negotiations over a new agreement in West Virginia.
The UFCW has reached a historic tentative agreement with the largest employers in the national pension plan, including Kroger. Your vote is needed to ratify the proposed solution. (Albertsons/Safeway and Ahold locations outside of our region were also involved, however, none of our Safeway or Giant members are affected by this proposal, you are in a different pension fund.)
The agreement:
- Provides a $1.84 billion employer contribution to the pension plan which will help ensure that any benefits you have earned are protected and help enable the plan to be well-funded for many years to come;
- Establishes a new future service pension plan which is similar to the current plan, but lowers the amount of returns needed from investments to maintain benefits;
- Provides a bridge to transition members to the new plan with minimal disruption;
- Maintains current contribution levels.
While your union recommends this tentative agreement, it is ultimately your decision whether this agreement is ratified. Your vote on this proposal will decide if it goes into effect.
This vote will only apply to:
- All Local 400 members working at Kroger under our West Virginia contract
- Local 400 members working as meat cutters under our Kroger Roanoke contract
We will provide more information on the proposal and its details, including how and when you will have the opportunity to vote on it, in the near future. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us or talk to your union representative.