LONG BEACH (CBSLA) Kroger, the parent company of Ralphs and Food 4 Less, announced Monday that it will close two of its Long Beach stores following the adoption of a law that would increase grocery store workers by $ 4 an hour.
Kroger reported that he would close his Ralphs store at 3380 N. on April 17, and Los Coyotes Diagonal and his Food 4 Less store at 2185 E. South St.
“Due to the decision of the City of Long Beach to adopt an ordinance requiring additional payment for grocery workers, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close long-term shopping centers in Long Beach,” the company said in a news release. “This wrongdoing by the Long Beach City Council transcends the traditional bargaining process and applies to some, but not all, grocery workers in the city.”
Last month, the Long Beach City Council enacted a ordinance requiring groceries with at least 300 employees nationwide to provide their employees with an extra $ 4.00 an hour for the next 120 days due to the risks of contracting coronavirus pandemics. work. .
Los Angeles City Councilors are currently considering a similar motion that would offer their grocery workers an extra $ 5 an hour in paychecks.
Last March and April, as the pandemic unfolded, several major grocery stores and retailers – including Kroger, Walmart, Target and Albertsons – gave their employees one-time bonuses or temporary pay raises of $ 2 per hour.
Kroger claimed Monday that he had spent $ 1.3 billion since the start of the pandemic to “reward employees and put in place dozens of security measures.”