State treasurers in three New England states say a potential Stop & Shop workers’ strike “would have far-reaching operational and economic consequences.” 

Stop & Shop has said it will move forward on Friday with plans to close a distribution center in Freetown, Massachusetts unless the Teamsters Local 25 union agrees to a change in health care coverage for employees that will save the company money. The union says it will picket every Stop & Shop store in New England if that happens, and the UFCW, which represents 30,000 Stop & Shop workers in the region, has said it will honor those picket lines. 

Massachusetts state Treasurer Deb Goldberg, Rhode Island Treasurer James Diossa and Connecticut Treasurer Erick Russell wrote a letter to Stop & Shop’s Amsterdam-based parent company Ahold Delhaize, warning of “significant reputational risk.” There are 117 Stop & Shop stores in Massachusetts, 25 in Rhode Island and 83 in Connecticut.

“The company has built a strong customer base over decades, in part because consumers trust that it treats its workers fairly,” the treasurers wrote. “A labor dispute of this magnitude risks eroding that trust, driving loyal customers to competitors and causing lasting damage to Stop & Shop’s brand.”

An 11-day strike in 2019 cost the company $345 million, Stop & Shop estimates.

Labor battle over Stop & Shop distribution center

According to the Teamsters, more than 900 workers in Freetown are at risk of losing their jobs if Stop & Shop outsources the work. The union said in a statement that Ahold Delhaize made $94 billion in sales last year “but its greedy, morally bankrupt executives are demanding sacrifices from the very workers who made that success possible.”

“The Teamsters will never let a foreign-owned corporation bully American workers into accepting substandard health care,” the union said in a statement. “Our members will not be intimidated. We will not back down.”

Stop & Shop said Wednesday that it wants to put the workers on the same health care plan that management has, and is offering the employees a 25% raise over a five-year period.

“It is our hope that Teamsters Local 25 collaborates with us to maintain operations at Freetown and to support the strategy we have in place to help ensure the long-term health of our brand,” Stop & Shop said in a statement. “We also want to assure our customers that Stop & Shop stores are open and ready to serve our communities.”