LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Kroger is closing three more of its stores in Los Angeles after the city passed a “hero payment” decree requiring a $ 5 increase in payment for grocery and pharmacy workers.
Two Ralphs stores – at 9616 West Pico Blvd. and 3300 West Slauson Ave. – and a Food 4 Less at 5420 W. Sunset Blvd. it will close on May 15, according to Kroger. The company said on Wednesday that the three stores were already underperforming and that the Los Angeles order accelerated the closure.
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(Photo by Brittany Murray / MediaNews Group / Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images)
“We never want to close a store, but when you take into account the increased operating costs during COVID-19, consistent financial losses in these three locations and an extra payment order that will cost almost $ 20 million over the next 120 days, it becomes impossible to operate these three stores, ”said Kroger in a statement.
It is unclear how many workers will be laid off when the three stores close in May. But Kroger said it would provide the mandatory extra payment to all members, including those working in the three locations with scheduled closings.
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Kroger says its associates at Ralphs and Food 4 Less in Los Angeles already earn $ 18 an hour. With health plans and pension benefits, his total pay reaches up to $ 24 an hour, according to Kroger. The supermarket giant says it has also invested $ 2.5 billion to reward its associates and implement security measures since the beginning of the pandemic, and recently issued $ 50 million in rewards to frontline associates.
The company also highlighted its efforts to vaccinate its frontline employees as soon as possible, publicizing three vaccine clinics that will take place this week to its associates in Los Angeles. Kroger, which is offering a $ 100 vaccination reward to its employees, says that nearly 20% of its associates have received the first dose or are fully vaccinated.
“Prioritizing vaccinations – not arbitrary mandates for extra pay – is what will keep frontline workers protected,” said a Kroger spokesman in the statement.
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Kroger has struggled with the hazardous hazard premiums that have been approved by several counties in recent months. In Long Beach, the company has already announced the closure of two stores in response to the “hero payment” ordinance in that city.