Thursday News After Noon.....Safeway Offers Union Buyouts, A New Store for King Kullen??

Image via Wikipedia

Safeway East to Offer Union Buyouts...
Safeway is meeting with union employees from its Eastern Division stores this week to discuss buyout offers for certain long-time employees, Supermarket News reported this morning.  Safeway is offering voluntary buyouts that would provide a lump-sum payment, in addition to severance, of between $35,000 and $50,000 to eligible employees.

King Kullen Real Estate: New Southampton Village Project, a New Home for King Kullen?
New development has "ideal real estate" for a supermarket, from the East Hampton Star:

As the plans look now, Pier One would move out of the building it occupies and into the Fortunoff building, which would be expanded from 6,000 to 10,000 square feet. Its former building would be expanded to anywhere from 24,000 to 30,000 square feet to accommodate a supermarket.


Mr. Gray said he had been in talks with Waldbaum’s but they had not moved forward. He said a smaller grocery operation such as Whole Foods, Citarella, or Food Emporium would be ideal for such a space. If King Kullen did move into the space behind the Sunoco station in Tuckahoe, he said it would be an ideal place for a Wild by Nature store, which is owned by the same company. He said Trader Joe’s, a discounted specialty grocery chain, would not be able to afford the rent at that site. He said he had been told that any market would need at least 30,000 square feet to consider the site, even though Mr. Murphree said the town’s intention was to have a 24,000 to 26,000-square-foot building there.

Columbia Athletics Teams Up with Fairway Market for Shopping Event in Plainview, Long Island
Fairway Market at Plainview, Long Island is hosting a shopping event to support the Columbia Lions on Wednesday, May 19.

Hannaford to take over former Tops site in Lake Placid:
The Hannaford Supermarkets company announced Wednesday that it has signed a lease agreement for a store in the former Tops supermarket site

Wal-Mart Store to pay up to $86M to settle unpaid wages lawsuit
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has agreed to pay up to $86 million to settle a lawsuit alleging it owes workers in California vacation pay and other unpaid wages, according to court filings on Tuesday.  Walmart will pay a minimum of $43 million and up to $86 million, plus the cost associated with a third party to calculate wages due to the workers.

Bristol Walmart workers arrested in connections with eight bomb threats
Bristol, Va. Walmart employees were arrested Tuesday and accused of calling in at least a dozen bomb threats to the store over the past week.

Brooklyn Navy Yard Project gets $60M Injection
A federal initiative that allows foreign investors to finance development projects in areas of high unemployment, according to the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation.

The White House is calling for companies to stop marketing unhealthy foods to kids. [WSJ]
The recommendation is part of an 120-page report released Tuesday that outlines steps to fight the national epidemic. One in every three children ages 2-19 is overweight or obese, the report says. First Lady Michelle Obama has taken up childhood obesity as her signature cause.

UFCW Local 23 members rallied on Tuesday for good jobs in their community. This rally was all about showing solidarity and pride in being a member of their union--the UFCW.

Whole Foods is ahead of Earnings

USDA looks to reduce foodborne illnesses in poultry

UFCW: Arizona is Aiming to Punish Unions

Tuesday Morning One Liners: Fresh Direct Won't Cross a 32BJ Picket Line, D'Agostino's New Ad Campaign

Progressive Grocer: Tackling Obesity; A Blueprint for Sucess. 
For the first time, government, the food and beverage industry, parents, and other stakeholders  share the same goal in tackling Obesity.

Stop & Shop Promotes their Green ways, gives away a Hybrid:
As a way to mark Earth Day this week, Stop & Shop is drawing attention to such company-wide green initiatives as the incorporation of sustainable product on shelves, the implementation of energy-efficient lighting in stores and a policy of encouraging customers to use reusable bags. Additionally, this month, the Ahold USA division plans to give away two Honda Insight Hybrids.

The NY Times looks at D'Agostino's new witty, creative advertising campaign: "Managers Gone Wild!"
The specials, on groceries, meat, poultry, produce and baked goods, are peddled with one-liners not often found in the stodgy world of supermarket marketing.
“Somebody slap me, please,” Bob Fonti, the meat manager, says about a sale on Shady Brook ground turkey.
The produce manager, John Vasapoli, declares: “I’ve gone mad! Mad, I tell you!” in pricing broccoli.
You can check out the TV spot here.

Crain's checks out a Park Slope Food Coop that is 'running up more profits and members than it knows what to do with'

New York Times looks at buying in bulk in NYC a look at Costco in Manhattan: 30 Pack of Charmin, but Where to Store It?
When Costco opened its first Manhattan outpost last November, in a soaring East 116th Street shopping complex with river views, management did not know precisely who or what to expect: Would customers stream in from East Harlem and Washington Heights? Or would the aisles be flooded with Upper West Siders stocking up on San Pellegrino? How much demand would there be for kosher meat? Costcos nationwide sell some 57 million rolls of Charmin per month: would people living in cramped apartments go for those 30-roll packages?

Retailwire: Costco's Manhattan Project (Free Subscription Required)

The Journal News: Fairway's Grand Opening in Pelham Manor

The Westchester Magazine checks out Fairway's Grand Opening in Pelham Manor

The Bronx News has great photos of the grand opening

32BJ Contract

"We are ready to walk out if we need to. We all have families to support and rents to pay."
- Santiago Gonzalez, a doorman on the upper East Side and SEIU 32BJ strike captain, in today's Daily News.


Fresh Direct Won't Cross 32BJ Picket Line: Fresh Direct will refuse to enter buildings whose doormen are on strike. The unionized drivers of Local 348S want to show solidarity with building workers, and will make anyone who orders groceries to those buildings meet them on the street and carry the boxes themselves. Union leader Eduardo Cordero said “We will not be putting our members in any kind of danger or any situation that would provoke trouble... At the same time, the company still has to provide a service."


NY Times: If Doormen Strike, Residents must pick up the Slack

Business Week: NY Doorman Strike May Trash Men of Luxury Residents

Politics
NY Post: Gillibrand can't crack the 50% barrier

Voters in Washington could see an initiative this year to break up the state government monopoly on liquor sales [NY Times]

Elsewhere
And finally, Danny Glover a great friend to the UFCW and Labor, was arrested in a food protest.

The Politics of Food

Image via Wikipedia
Today at Columbia University, UFCW Local 1500 took part in a conference presented by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer on New York's next policy challenge: "Food Policy" Keynote speakers included Mayor Bloomberg & United Nations General Assembly President H.E. Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann, while Pat Purcell of Local 1500 served as a co-moderator for the event. The event filled the auditorium at Alfred Lerner Hall with activists, policy makers and community members.

The overall focus of the conference was to gain insight from participants on solutions to solving the growing problem New Yorkers and people throughout the world are facing, access to healthy affordable food. It asked the question why low income areas are facing riveting diabetes and obesity rates. Questions were raised asking, How can supermarkets be retained and improved? Speakers outlined the recent "decay" of the Supermarket industry throughout New York City and stressed the need for more Supermarkets throughout the city.

It seems that government is finally understanding the big picture. Bodega's that inhabit every street corner throughout the five boroughs fail to provide affordable food, not even healthy food. Gourmet Grocery stores provide healthy foods, but at prices no working class person can afford. The lack of supermarkets force people to rely on shopping at Bodega's, 99 cent stores, Fast-Food restaurants and Drug Stores like CVS or Rite-Aid that have poor quality and limited selections of food. This brings us to where we are today:

• Diabetes now affects over 700,000 people in New York City
• 1.1 Million New Yorkers are obese
• 2 Million are overweight
• 3 Million New Yorkers live in neighborhoods with a "high need for grocery stores and supermarkets"

That's why Local 1500 launched its Building Blocks Campaign. Our plan to bring Good Food, Good Jobs which will bring Good Health to the supermarket starved communities. Please read our principles, and please comment, we'd love to hear your ideas and suggestions.

The Politicker also had a write up on the conference here.