Stop & Shop
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| Company type | Retail |
|---|---|
| Industry | Grocery |
| Founded | (Somerville, Massachusetts) |
| Founder | The Rabinovitz family |
| Headquarters | Quincy, Massachusetts , United States of America |
Area served | New England and Mid-Atlantic |
| Products | Grocery, Florist, Deli, Cheese Shop, Produce, Seafood, Meats, Dairy, Pharmacy, General Merchandise |
Number of employees | 58,000 |
| Parent | Royal Ahold |
| Website | Stop & Shop |
The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company is a chain of supermarkets located mostly in New England. Stop & Shop was founded in 1914 in Somerville, Massachusetts by the Rabinovitz family as the Economy Grocery Stores Company. The company officially became known as Stop & Shop, Inc. in 1946. T Stop & Shop purchased the now-defunct department store chain Bradlees in 1961, and sold it in 1992. They also operated a chain of pharmacies named Medi-Mart, which was sold to Walgreens in the late 1980s.
Stop & Shop is now the largest food retailer in New England. It operates more than 360 stores throughout New England, as well as New York and New Jersey. Their corporate headquarters are in Quincy, Massachusetts and their current distribution facilities are located in Assonet, Massachusetts. Their warehouse used to be in Readville, MA. One of their original stores still stands on Truman Parkway, in Hyde Park, Massachusetts.
Stop & Shop came close to gaining 60 more stores in Northeastern Massachusetts and New Hampshire as a result of a lawsuit regarding the DeMoulas' Market Basket chain.
The chain was acquired by the American branch of Dutch food giant Ahold in 1996. In 2000, Ahold reintroduced Stop & Shop into the New York metropolitan area by switching most of its Edwards grocery stores to Stop & Shops (however, in portions of the area north of New York City this process began in 1996). In 2004, Ahold integrated Stop & Shop Supermarkets with Giant Food LLC and created one combined company with the name of Giant-Stop & Shop.
In 2006 Stop & Shop signed a contract with Starbucks Coffee Company, placing Starbucks Licenced Stores inside of their supermarkets [similar to department store giant Target]. First locations to introduce this were Poughkeepsie, NY, Morris Plains, NJ and Dix Hills, NY.
Stop & Shop also has numerous in-house brands including: Care One (Health and Beauty Care), Acadia (Spring Water Products), Nature's Promise (Natural and Organic Foods), Clear Splash and Main Street(Carbonated Beverages), Javana (Coffee), Companion (Pet Food), Mi Casa (Hispanic Items), White Gem (Chicken) Cottontails (Diapers and Accessories), Guaranteed Value (Bulk Items), KaPop (Popcorn), Smart Living (General Merchandise), and their newest line of luxury foods at affordable prices, Simply Enjoy.
Recent Contract Negotiations & Complications
On February 18th, 2007, the Stop & Shop contract expired after three years. In an attempt to maintain their current health care benefits, Union workers threatened to strike. It was understood that no strike would occur until at least Thursday, February 22, 2007. If a new contract was not signed by then, workers could begin the walk out as early as Friday, February 23, 2007. The New England company's 43,000 workers said health care was the main concern. Stop & Shop wanted employees to share the cost of healthcare, but Union workers believe Stop & Shop should pay it in full. [1]
Workers have been paying co-pays for office visits and medical procedures, as well as deductibles of $300 for health care costs and $2,500 for hospital costs. The grocery chain now wanted to implement weekly contributions of between $5 and $21 on top of the co-pays. These fees would increase over the course of the three-year contract.
On midnight of February 23rd, 2007, grocery workers at the Stop & Shop supermarket chain in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts had voted overewelmingly to reject a contract proposal and to authorize a strike against the grocery chain. The contracts for United Food and Commercial Workers Locals 328, 371, 919, 1445 and 1459 expired on Feb. 17 and extended to cover until the 22nd, but the union and the grocery chain agreed to expand the deadline two more days, to midnight of Saturday, February 24th. [2]
Officials with Stop & Shop and the United Food and Commercial Workers continued negotiating through Friday, March 2nd, 2007, extending the contract until 12:01 a.m. Saturday, March 3rd, 2007, given that talks are scheduled to continue through Friday. Both sides extended the negotiations, which resumed Monday, February 26th, 2007. [3]
On Saturday, March 3rd, the five unions involved gave the company a very complicated and comprehensive contract proposal that covers every aspect of their five agreements and identifies what they believe to be a fair and equitable contract for everyone. On Wednesday, March 7, the five locals representing workers in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts scheduled voting on a new contract for Sunday, extending the strike deadline for Monday, March 12, 2007. The locals delivered a comprehensive contract to Stop & Shop negotiators Saturday and the two sides took a break from bargaining to allow the company to go over the proposal. Approximately 43,000 unionized Stop & Shop workers in three states could have either had a new contract that Sunday or begin walking picket lines possibly that Monday, according to union officials. [4]
New Contract
The contentious stop-and-go negotiations between Stop & Shop and its five unions came to a surprising yet happy conclusion with a three-year contract overwhelmingly ratified by union members across New England, and a strike averted.
Wages and Health care
All full-time workers will receive an increase of $25 per week retroactive to Feb. 17, when the previous contract expired; then another $20 weekly increase in March 2008 and March 2009, the second and third years of the contract. Part-timers receive an immediate 35 cents an hour increase, also retroactive, and 35 cents yet again in years two and three of the contract. On the critical issue of health care, full-time workers who are single must now contribute $5 per week toward their health insurance premiums; married workers with spouse must pay $10, and a worker with a family $15. Part-time workers will make no contributions toward health care premiums, retaining the current practice which covers union workers health insurance entirely except for co-payments and deductibles. [5]
Stop-n-Shop is an unrelated Ohio-based supermarket specializing in home delivery.[1]
Trivia
- The Modern Lovers's song "Roadrunner" cites "Gonna drive past the Stop 'n' Shop; With the radio on now; I'm in love with the modern world; Massachusetts when its cold outside."
- Stop and Shop is mentioned and shown on the Fox comedy Family Guy, which is situated in Rhode Island.
External links
References
- ^ Still no contract for Stop & Shop www.wtnh.com
- ^ Grocery workers fight Stop & Shop for contract www.pslweb.org
- ^ Stop & Shop, Union Extends Negotiations www.courant.com
- ^ Stop & Shop faces Sunday vote www.connpost.com
- ^ Stop & Shop averts strike once and for all www.newhavenindependent.org
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