This contract transcript is based on the original document located here.

Contract effective 5/8/2022 - 5/3/2025 (8/7/2022 - 8/2/2025 Snohomish County)

Agreement by and between ALLIED EMPLOYERS, INC and UNITED FOOD AND COMMERCIAL WORKERS UNION LOCAL NO. 3000

Chartered by UNITED FOOD AND COMMERCIAL WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION, AFL-CIO

Grocery (King and Snohomish Counties)

This Agreement is entered into by and between Allied Employers, Inc., referred to hereinafter as the “Employer,” and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 3000, referred to hereinafter as the “Union.”

It is the intent and purpose of the Employer and the Union to promote and improve Labor Management relations between them and to set forth herein the basic terms of Agreement covering wages, hours and conditions of employment to be observed by the parties of this Agreement.

In consideration of the mutual promises and agreements between the parties hereto, and in consideration of their mutual desire in promoting the efficient conduct of business and in providing for the orderly settlement of disputes between them, the parties to this Agreement agree as follows:

1.1 Allied Employers, Inc. hereby recognizes United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 3000 as the sole and exclusive Collective Bargaining Agency for a unit consisting of all employees employed in the Employer’s present and future grocery stores, including concessions under the direct control of the Employer party to this Agreement, located in King and Snohomish Counties, State of Washington, with respect to rates of pay, hours, and other conditions of employment except and excluding employees whose work is performed within a meat, culinary, prescription or bakery production department location of the retail establishment, supervisory employees within the meaning of the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 as amended, and employees presently covered by a grocery contract between Allied Employers, Inc., and Teamsters Local No. 38 and employees coming under a grocery contract with Teamsters Local No. 38 pursuant to the application of the accretion clause. Subject to the preceding exclusions and the terms of Section 15.1 of Article 15, all work of handling and selling of merchandise in such retail stores covered by this Agreement shall be performed only by employees of the Employer within the unit referred to above for which United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 3000 is recognized as the sole Collective Bargaining Agency by the Employers.

1.2 United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 3000 for and on behalf of its members, hereby recognizes Allied Employers, Inc. as the sole and exclusive Collective Bargaining Agency for all Employers who are designated as parties to this Agreement.

1.3 Any Employer, which as of the execution of this Agreement, has authorized Allied Employers, Inc. to represent them shall continue to be bound by this Agreement for its duration even though such Employer may hereafter cancel or withdraw such authorization.

1.4 Bakery Joint Jurisdiction: For Departments opened or converted after November 16, 1984, the parties agree that the jurisdiction of the Bake-Off/Deli Department or Bake-Off Department will be shared jointly with UFCW No. 3000 and Bakery & Confectionery Workers Local #9, which allows for the complete interchangeability of duties and work assignments between Clerks and Bakery Union employees within the Bake-Off/Deli Department or Bake-Off Department. It is agreed with Local No. 3000 that the Bakers Union will be guaranteed a minimum of one (1) member in each shop. Both the Bakers and the Clerks agree that the Bake- Off/Deli Department or Bake-Off Department will be entitled to one (1) exempt employee who will not be required to be a member of either Local.

1. Definition of Bake-Off: A shop will be considered a Bake-Off covered under this Agreement if it is producing less than 45% of the product from scratch dough. If the Bake-Off is producing more than 45% of the product from scratch, the terms of the UFCW 3000 Grocery Clerks Agreement will apply to the Sales portion of the Department and the Bakery & Confectionery Local #9 In-Store contract will apply to the Production portion of the Department. Product produced from mixes will be considered made from scratch for purposes of this Agreement

2.1 Pursuant to and in conformance with Section 8(a)3 of the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947, as amended, it shall be a condition of employment that all employees covered by this Agreement who are members of the Union in good standing on the effective date of this Agreement shall remain members in good standing, and those who are not members on the effective date of this Agreement shall, on the thirtieth (30th) day following the effective date of this Agreement, become and remain members in good standing in the Union. It shall also be a condition of employment that all employees covered by this Agreement and hired on or after its effective date shall, on the thirtieth (30th) day following the beginning of such employment, become and remain members in good standing in the Union. For the purpose of this Article, the execution date of this Agreement shall be considered as its effective date.

1. The tendering of initiation fee and periodic dues uniformly required as a condition of continued membership shall constitute good standing in the Union for the purpose of this Article.

2.2 The Employer shall discharge any employee as to whom the Union, through its authorized representative, delivers to the Employer’s Main Office a written notice that such employee is not in good standing in conformity with this Article. For the purpose of establishing uniform rules for the application of this paragraph of the Agreement, the parties agree as follows:

1. If a newly hired employee fails to apply for Union membership, or if an employee fails to comply with the requirements of continued membership as set forth above, the Union will serve a letter upon the Employer requesting that such employee be terminated.
2. Upon receipt of a letter requesting termination of an employee who has not complied with Article 2 of the Agreement, the Employer shall (on the same date, if the employee is working on that date) immediately notify such employee that if he/she has not complied with the Union membership requirements of Article 2 of the Agreement within 14 days from the date of written request for termination, his/her employment shall automatically be terminated.
3. The Union agrees to withdraw any letter of termination if an employee, with respect to whom such letter has been served, shall complete his membership requirements within the time limit specified in 2.2.1 and 2.2.2.
4. Whenever the Union requires the discharge of any employee in connection with the Union security clause of this Contract, the Union shall hold the Employer harmless and shall indemnify the Employer against loss, as a result of relying upon the direction of the Union in terminating any employee. The Employer agrees that when the Union notifies the Employer within three (3) days of the original notice, that the reason for the termination was a bona fide clerical error, the Employer will reinstate the employee to his former position on the next weekly schedule.

2.3 Each month, the Employer shall provide an electronic report of all new hires and terminations. Such report shall include the employees’ first name, middle initial and last name, social security number, phone number (home and/or cell), email (if available), store #/work location, department, job classification, wage rate, date of hire/rehire and/or date of termination.

Each quarter, the Employer shall provide an electronic report of all employees covered under the current bargaining agreement. Such report shall include the employees’ first name, middle initial and last name, social security number, address, phone number (home and/or cell), email (if available), store #/work location, department, job classification, wage rate, and date of hire/rehire.

2.4 No employee shall be disciplined or discharged except for just cause. The Employer shall be the judge of the competency and qualifications of his employees and shall make such judgment fairly. The Employer’s judgment is subject to review by an Arbitrator.

1. There exists one (1) 90-calendar day probationary period for new employees. If an employee is terminated during this probationary period, such terminations are not subject to Article 17 of this Agreement. This ninety (90) day period shall be extended by the amount of time the employee is absent from or unavailable for work due to medical reasons during the probationary period. The Employer must notify both the employee and the Union in writing, prior to the completion of the probationary period, of their intent to extend the probationary period.

2.5 No employee shall be discharged or discriminated against for any lawful Union activity, including performing service on a Union committee outside of business hours or for reporting to the Union the violation of any provisions of the Labor Agreement, providing such activities shall not interfere with the normal performance of the employee’s work.

2.6 The Employer agrees that it will not require any employee or prospective employee to take a polygraph (lie detector) test as a condition of employment or continued employment.

3.1 Attainment of Seniority

1. All employees shall attain seniority after ninety (90) calendar days with the Employer.
2. Upon completion of this period, seniority shall date back to the last date of hire.

3.2 Application of Seniority

1. Seniority shall be applicable on an individual store basis, except as otherwise provided for under Section 3.2.2, 3.3, and 3.4, and shall apply to the extent provided for in this Article.
2. An employee’s seniority shall not be broken in cases where the employee transfers to a different store with the same Employer within the geographic jurisdiction covered by the Collective Bargaining Agreements between the Employer and United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 3000, United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 367, and Teamsters Union Local No. 38.
3. When an employee is transferred by the Employer from another area, outside those listed in 3.2.2 above, the transferred employee shall retain all seniority rights with the Employer but shall be entitled to exercise such rights only after having worked in the bargaining unit for a minimum of ninety (90) calendar days.

3.3 Layoff

1. Where, on an individual store basis, there is a reduction of the number of employees holding seniority within such a store, the last employee hired shall be the first employee laid off, provided qualifications and ability are equal. The affected employee so reduced may displace the most junior employee of the Employer in the same classification, i.e., clerks, helper clerks and courtesy clerks, within the geographic jurisdiction covered by this Agreement, provided qualifications and ability are equal. A layoff is defined as two consecutive weeks that an employee is not shown on the weekly work schedule. In the event of a store closure, the affected employees shall be considered laid off at the time of the closure.

3.4 Rehire

1. Where there is an increase in the number of employees within a job classification, the last employee laid off by the Employer, within the geographic jurisdiction covered by this Agreement, will be the first employee rehired, provided qualifications and ability are equal. In the cases where two or more employees are laid off on the same day, the senior employee shall be the first rehired, provided qualifications and ability are equal.
2. Employees shall be required to inform the Employer in writing of their current address and phone number, and with the exception of temporary rehires, employees rehired in accordance with 3.4.1 shall be notified in writing to report to work.

3.5 Loss of Seniority

1. Except as otherwise provided for in Article 4 – Leave of Absence, seniority shall be broken and the employee’s service shall be terminated for the following reasons:
2. Voluntary quit;
3. Discharge in accordance with Section 2.4;
4. Absence caused by a layoff in excess of sixty (60) consecutive calendar days. Notwithstanding the above, employee(s) laid off due to the closure of their store will retain their seniority for one hundred twenty (120) consecutive calendar days, unless they fail to exercise their seniority with the Employer at their first opportunity; refuse to accept recall; and/or accepts employment with the purchaser.
5. Absence caused by an illness or non-occupational accident of more than nine (9) months;
6. Absence caused by an occupational accident of more than eighteen (18) consecutive months unless a longer period is agreed upon between the Employer and the Union;
7. Failure to report to work within seventy-two (72) hours following the postmark of the written notice referred to in Section 3.4.2 mailed to employee’s last known address; and,
8. Failure to report to work immediately following a Leave of Absence as provided for under Article 4.

3.6 Reduction of Hours

1. Regular employees shall not have their hours arbitrarily reduced for the purpose of increasing the working hours of regular part-time employees or assigning such hours to new hires or extra employees.

3.7 Available Hours

1. The Employer may arrange weekly work schedules to accommodate the needs of the business, and senior employees shall be offered the most weekly hours up to a maximum of forty (40) hours per week; provided qualifications and ability are equal; the senior employee is available to perform the work; and the employee has notified management in writing of his or her desire for additional hours of work. Nothing herein shall be construed as a guarantee of daily or weekly hours of work or pay for time not worked. It shall be the obligation of the Employer to promptly investigate alleged abuses upon presentation, and to rectify such abuses when justified within the meaning of this section.
2. The Employer agrees that the provisions of Section 3.7.1 shall not be applied in an arbitrary manner and the Employer shall, at the request of the Union, provide business reasons for the scheduling of employees in that given store.

3.8 Definitions

1. “Provided Qualifications and Ability are Equal” – It is understood and agreed that the term “provided qualifications and ability are equal” shall mean that if two (2) employees have the same qualifications and abilities, the senior employee has priority.

3.9 Liability

1. It is understood and agreed that the employee will not be entitled to request wages under the provisions of this Article except to the extent of time lost, commencing with the weekly work schedule next following receipt of the Union’s written notification to the Employer of the claim, in accordance with Article 17, provided that if less than three (3) days remain prior to the posting of the weekly work schedule in accordance with Section 5.9 when the Employer receives notification, the Employer’s liability, if any, for time lost shall commence with the second next work schedule and thereafter until resolved.

4.1 Employees with one (1) year or more of continuous service shall be entitled to a leave of absence without pay for the following bona fide reasons:

1. Bona fide illness or non-occupational injury which requires absence from work in excess of fourteen (14) calendar days.
2. Pregnancy.
3. Serious illness or injury in the employee’s immediate family.
4. A Doctor’s certificate verifying the absence must be furnished if requested by the Employer.

4.2 Leaves for personal reasons may be granted at the sole discretion of the Employer to employees regardless of length of service.

1. Union stewards may be granted up to two (2) unpaid days off per calendar year to attend Union functions. Only one (1) shop steward per store location may be granted this time off.
2. Upon request of the Union, leaves of absence without pay for Union business not to exceed nine (9) months may be granted by the Employer to employees regardless of length of service.

4.3 Any request for a leave of absence under the terms of Sections 4.1 and 4.2 shall be in writing and state the following information:

1. Reason for such request;
2. Date leave is to begin; and,
3. Date of return to work.

4.4 Any leave of absence, with the exception of Section 4.1.3 and 4.5, may run to a maximum of nine (9) months.

4.5 Leaves due to occupational injuries that result from employment with the current Employer regardless of length of service, shall be granted for a period up to eighteen (18) months unless a longer period is agreed upon between the Employer and the Union.

4.6 The employee must be qualified to resume his regular duties upon return to work from an approved leave of absence.

1. A doctor’s certificate verifying that the employee is able to resume his normal duties must be furnished if requested by the Employer.
2. The employee shall then return to the job previously held or to a job comparable with regard to rate of pay, on the first weekly schedule prepared after the Employer has received notice in writing of the employee’s availability.

4.7 Any employee who fails to return to work at the end of a leave of absence shall be terminated.

4.8 Any employee found to have abused the “leave of absence” by falsification or misrepresentation shall thereupon be subject to disciplinary action.