A strike of workers at a grocery supplier in Pembroke is continuing this week after a dispute over pensions in their new contract.
Union leaders say the picket line outside the Associated Grocers Northeast distribution center is going round the clock. The 255 striking union members include truck drivers and warehouse workers spread over four shifts.
The workers are represented by Teamsters Local 633, which claims that Associated Grocers is failing to offer a fair contract. The union says Associated Grocers is trying to cut union members' pension, and is offering a non-matching 401k instead.
Associated Grocers says it is hoping for an end to the standoff.
“We are disappointed that negotiations have stalled, but AGNE leaders remain at the table and hope for a resolution to this contract dispute," AGNE President and CEO Michael Violette said in a statement to the Union Leader.
Associated Grocers is one of the biggest grocery suppliers in the region. New Hampshire grocery stores are reporting empty shelves as a result of the strike.
“We have no milk. We're almost completely out of eggs,” said Shirley Stretton, who works at Richardson's Market in Portsmouth. “Our shelves are looking pretty bare.”
Usually the store gets 90% of its stock from Associated Grocers, but there have been no deliveries in nearly a week because of the strike.
The owners of Richardson's Market say they want to keep Associated Grocers as their vendor, but are exploring other options for stocking the store, too.
