Phil Castle, The Business Times

Kim Cordova fears what an acquisition that would combine Kroger and Albertsons might mean for the employees of the grocery store chains.

But Cordova said she’s also worried about the implications of further grocery store consolidations for consumers and communities in Colorado.

“It’s bad for the consumer. It’s bad for workers. It’s bad, we believe, for our economy,” said Cordova, the five-term president of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Local 7. Based in Wheat Ridge, UFCW Local 7 represents a total of 23,000 members in Colorado and Wyoming.

Local 7 joined with six other UFCW locals to oppose the merger, In addition, the unions joined with a total of more than 100 national, state and local organizatoins in what’s billed as the Stop the Merger campaign.

Kroger announced in 2022 the proposed acquisition of Albertsons in a $24.6 billion deal that would combine the two largest supermarket chains into a 4,500-store operation. The proposed transaction also would involve the diversititure of 579 stores that would be sold to C&S Wholesale Grocers for $2.9 billion. That would include 91 Albertsons stores in Colorado.

In February, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission sued to block the merger, claiming a lack of competition would lead to higher grocery prices and lower wages for workers.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed a lawsuit challenging the merger, alleging it would violate antitrust provisions in state law that prohibit acquisitions that could substantially lessen competition or create a monopoly.

Scott Moses, a partner with Solomon Partners based in New York hired to advise on the proposed acquisition by Kroger Co. of Albertsons, said in a Zoom call with Colorado reporters the merger is necessary for traditional grocers like Kroger and Albertsons to remain competitive in a changing market increasingly dominated by such non-traditional grocers as mass merchants, warehouse clubs and a proliferation of discount stores. Moreover, Moses said the merger would result in lower prices for consumers and higher wages for employees.

In a telephone interview with the Business Times, Cordova disagreed. She said she was fearful further consolidation and the resulting decrease in competition among traditional grocers would result in even higher prices for consumers as well as less security not only for employees of grocery stores, but also those working in the food supply chain.

Cordova said more than 17,000 members of UFCW Local 7 would be affected by the proposed merger. “Our members are really terrified.”

But the implications extend to those working at meat packing plants, warehouses and others suppliers as well as farmers and ranchers, she said.

Increased consolidation and decreased competition make it more difficult for unions to negotiate for wages, benefits and other working conditions, Cordova said.

Kroger has a history, Cordova said, of fighting union and organizing efforts. “Kroger is not a union-friendly company.”

That leaves UFCW members worried about their wages as well as health care benefits and pensions, she said.

The results of a survey conducted in 2022 revealed that many Kroger employees are already struggling, she said. Of the employees who responded to the survey, 63 percent said they earned too little to cover basic expenses, 75 percent said they were food insecure and 14 percent said they were homeless. “You shouldn’t be homeless and hungry.”

Cordova said she’s also concerned about the diverstiture plan in which C&S  Wholesale Groceries would purchase 579 stores, including 91 Albertsons stores in Colorado.

C&S operates a wholesale supply business for grocers, but only a handful of stores. She said she’s concerned C&S will be unable to compete and ultimately could be forced to close stores.

When Albertsons merged with Safeway in 2015, Albertsons sold more than 100 stores to Haggen. But Haggen went bankrupt less than a year after the sale, closed stores and laid off thousands of workers, she said.

Cordova disputed the prospect an acquisition combining Kroger and Albertsons would result in lower prices. Grocery prices have remained high in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic as result of what she said is corporate greed, not unresolved supply chain issues.

In addition, Cordova said she’s concerned the merger would leave rural communities in Colorado with only one grocery store. And if stores close, even those sources of food could disappear, worsening conditions in some areas that are already food deserts.

The issue is an important one, she said. “We’re talking about the food supply chain, resources to live. It’s a big deal.”