Congressional Oversight Letter Slams Smart & Final for Unfair Labor Practices

https://teamster.org/2024/07/congressional-oversight-letter-slams-smart-final-for-unfair-labor-practices/

Teamsters Commend Rep. Gomez for Exposing Unlawful Behavior at Mexican-Owned Grocery Chain

Press Contact: Daniel Moskowitz Phone: (770) 262-4971 Email: dmoskowitz@teamster.org

(LOS ANGELES) – Today, the Teamsters applauded Representative Jimmy Gomez’s (D-CA) oversight request sent to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Department of Transportation (DOT), outlining serious concerns regarding Chedraui/Smart & Final’s unfair labor practices (ULPs) and calling for regulatory, legislative, or enforcement actions.

The letter comes as the grocery chain plans to close two unionized Smart & Final warehouses in Commerce and Riverside, Calif., terminating more than 600 warehouse workers and forcing them to reapply for employment at $10-$12 less per hour at a new nonunion mega warehouse in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. The workers represented by Teamsters Local 630 are currently on strike, protesting the mass layoffs and other ULPs by the company.

“Smart & Final and their parent company Chedraui think they are above the law, but they’re in for a rude awakening. We will stop at nothing to make sure our members’ jobs are protected,” said Lou Villalvazo, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 630. “Instead of negotiating a fair contract, refraining from unfair labor practices, and operating as a high-road employer, Chedraui USA CEO Carlos Smith has chosen to disrespect his workers in the name of corporate greed. The Teamsters will keep up the pressure in the streets and in the halls of government to hold this company accountable.”

In the letter, Rep. Gomez uses Smart & Final’s bad behavior as a case study in unfair practices that may currently operate outside the existing labor and cross-border trucking provisions of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), stating that Congress should consider whether new solutions are necessary to address these unfair practices as it prepares for a potential review and term extension of the USMCA in 2026. Today marks four years since the passage of the USMCA.

FULL story at link above.