Kroger grocery store announced on Monday that it will close two of its stores in Long Beach – a Ralph’s store and a Food4Less store – in response to a municipal decree requiring a $ 4 increase in hero wages for some workers.
“As a result of the decision by the City of Long Beach to pass a decree determining extra payment for workers in the grocery sector, we made the difficult decision to permanently close stores in Long Beach,” according to a company statement. the Long Beach City Council’s misguided action goes beyond the traditional negotiation process and applies to some, but not all, workers in the city’s grocery industry.
“The irreparable damage that will come to local officials and citizens as a direct result of the City of Long Beach’s attempt to pick winners and losers is deeply regrettable. We are really sad that our associates and customers end up being the real victims of city council actions. ‘ ‘
Mayor Robert Garcia was one of the main defenders of the decree. Before signing the measure, he wrote on Twitter that grocery workers “were at the forefront of this pandemic and deserve this support”.
According to Kroger, the Ralphs store at 3380 N. Los Coyotes Diagonal and the Food4Less store at 2185 E. South St. will close on April 17th.
Long Beach City Council last month initially approved a law requiring large grocers to pay their workers an extra $ 4 an hour in “hero pay” for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic. The law applies to companies with 300 or more workers in general and more than 15 employees per location in Long Beach.
The actor, known for his role as “Screech” in “Saved by the Bell”, was diagnosed with cancer three weeks ago.
The California Grocers Association was among those who opposed the decree, saying it would do nothing to increase worker safety, but it could actually lead to higher costs for consumers.
According to Kroger, the company spent $ 1.3 billion “to reward members and implement dozens of security measures” during the pandemic.