No preview available
HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-20-2021 Hazard Pay As you debate the necessity of a “hazard pay” ordinance before Council, the NW Grocery Association wanted to provide you with detailed information of what our grocery stores have provided to our associates throughout the pandemic. Our grocers value the commitment of our employees to serve our communities every day throughout the pandemic. Our work force is represented through labor unions. At the start of the Governor’s emergency order, grocers negotiated with those unions for memorandums of understanding (MOU) to cover the extraordinary circumstances beyond the scope of the contract. • An average of $2.00 per hour additional wage paid for several months. Some employers continue to pay this benefit today. • Lump sum cash benefit paid by some employers in addition to the additional per hour wage increase. • All available hours were offered first to our employees before hiring outside help • To accommodate for the loss of child care and school closures, we offered short-notice scheduling changes, temporary transfers to stores closure to home, and worked to find available reduced cost child care for our staff • Offered 80 hours paid leave with first day coverage for any employee with a positive COVID-19 test or household positive test BEFORE required under federal rule; after 80 hours, an employee was able to use other available leave to cover additional time off • Protection of health insurance while the employee was out especially if it were for an extended time period • Employees were allowed to utilize all leave options to cover for child care and care of loved ones to ensure they were paid during any needed time off • Free vaccines as soon as they were made available to our workers by the Governor; we continue to offer vaccines to all our workers in our pharmacies • Offering $100 for each worker to get vaccinated How did this translate to workers’ wages in Federal Way? Here are the numbers for wages within the City for just one of our members: Store Current Average Wage – Does not include COVID-19 additional wage paid Additional wages paid during 2020 Safeway 0477 (Military Rd) $18.44 per hour $113,833 above normal Safeway 1555 (S 320th) $19.75 per hour $224,014 above normal Safeway 3501 (SW 336th) $18.21 per hour $131,962 above normal In addition, retailers spent millions of dollars on PPE, including plastic barriers at check stands and other locations in-store, social distancing methodology, and covering the increase in the cost of goods to keep basic food product costs down for consumers. Employers provided PPE for workers and partnered with FEMA and other federal agencies to acquire required facial coverings to comply with state regulations. As a final note, grocers continue to try and help our workers and our communities work through this pandemic. Our union agreed to allow us to hire out-of-work restaurant employees on a temporary basis to keep these employees working while restaurants and hotels were closed. We donated tons of food to foodbanks and service groups to help those who needed extra assistance. We also donated food to free lunch programs and other support services to keep families in need fed. Our stores are doing our part to protect our workers, pay them a good wage and benefits, and provide them with immediate free vaccines to protect them not just at the workplace but in our communities. For questions please contact Holly Chisa (360)791-6647 hollychisa@hpcadvocacy.com