LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Kroger closes three more of its stores in Los Angeles after the city adopted a “hero’s payment” order requiring a $ 5 payment for food and pharmacy workers.
Two Ralphs stores – at 9616 West Pico Blvd. and 3300 West Slauson Ave. – and Food 4 Less at 5420 W. Sunset Blvd. will be closed on May 15, according to Kroger. The company said on Wednesday that the three stores are not already performing, and the mandate in Los Angeles has accelerated their closure.
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(Photo by Brittany Murray / MediaNews Group / Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images)
“It is never our desire to close a store, but when you take into account the increase in operating costs during COVID-19, substantial financial losses in these three locations and an additional payment order that will cost almost $ 20 million In the next 120 days, it will become impossible to operate these three stores, “Kroger said in a statement.
It is unclear how many workers will be laid off when the three stores close in May. But Kroger said he would offer mandatory overpayment to all associates, including those working at the three locations scheduled for closure.
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Kroger says his associates Ralphs and Food 4 Less in Los Angeles already earn $ 18 an hour. With the help of health and pension benefits, their total compensation reaches $ 24 per hour, according to Kroger. The grocery store giant says it has also invested $ 2.5 billion to reward its partners and implement security measures since the beginning of the pandemic and recently issued $ 50 million in rewards to first-time partners. line.
The company also highlighted its efforts to vaccinate its front-line workers as soon as possible, promoting three vaccination clinics taking place this week for its Los Angeles associates. Kroger, who offers his employees a $ 100 vaccination reward, says nearly 20 percent of his associates received the first dose or are completely vaccinated.
“Prioritizing vaccinations – not arbitrary warrants for overpayment – is what will protect front-line workers,” a Kroger spokesman said in a statement.
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Kroger has been fighting the risk-paying mandates that have been adopted by several municipalities in recent months. In Long Beach, the company has already announced the closure of two stores in response to the city’s “hero payment” ordinance.