Unusually vacant aisles and a closed bakery station at the
Westwood Ralphs grocery store have confused and frustrated some
shoppers as they stock up for the quarter.
Now that members of the Teamsters Union for Ralphs warehouses
““ locations that normally act as middlemen between produce
manufacturers and grocery sites ““ are no longer on strike,
many wonder why store supplies still remain low.
Warehouse employees and drivers originally refrained from
working out of sympathy for the United Food and Commercial Workers
union picketers who went on strike in mid-October to protest
decreased health care benefits.
Secret talks aimed at ending the three-month strike between the
union and the three grocery chains were held Sunday. No steps were
made toward a resolution.
During the Teamsters strike ““ which ended on Dec. 22
““ many merchandise deliveries were called off due to
warehouse picket lines. In addition, products were not delivered to
a substantial percentage of the 400 stores in California.
Scarce merchandise is a lasting effect of the three-month
strike.
To compensate for cancelled deliveries, Ralphs created new ways
of transferring products directly from manufacturing companies to
store shelves, but aisle supplies still plummeted.
Deliveries resumed when the sympathy strike ended and the
warehouse Teamsters returned to work.
But three weeks later, items are still missing throughout Ralphs
as the spaces normally occupied by ketchup bottles, laundry
detergent and canned goods remain empty.
Some students have felt the impacts of produce shortage on their
normal grocery shopping habits.
“Ralphs was out of real hash browns today, so I purchased
diced ones,” said third-year music student Jamie
Strowbridge.
“Last week, a lot of spices were missing too,” he
added.
Strikes continue at Albertsons and Vons so many of their
regulars have opted to shop at Ralphs to respect picketers.
Increased inventory demands from additional customers put
pressure on Ralphs’ limited ability to provide sufficient
produce.
It is understandable that supplies are limited, said economics
professor Earl Thompson.
“Warehouses only have so much capacity in terms of space,
suppliers, trucks and drivers,” he said. “You will see
bottlenecks.”
Warehouse supplies dwindled during the Teamster strike and
though it is over, replenishing everything will likely take a
while, said Ralphs spokesman Terry O’Neil.
Restocking depends on which products are available at
warehouses. Perishable products, such as floral and meat items, are
more difficult to replenish, O’Neil said.
Each store is missing different items, but O’Neil is
confident all Ralphs locations will be entirely restocked very
soon.
“Every day, you will see store shelves getting closer and
closer to the normal level of selection,” he said.
But despite promises that full stocks are not far off, some
shoppers still feel inconvenienced by item scarcity and by closed
grocery sections.
“I have to make another errand because there is no Kleenex
with aloe here,” said Westwood resident Anne Waldeck, who has
continued to frequent Ralphs throughout the strike.
“And the bakery here has been closed for three
months,” she added.
Ralphs management closed many seafood and bakery stations at
various store locations when the strike commenced because only
experienced handlers can manage them, O’Neil said.
Such stations will take longer to reopen because temporary
workers do not have enough experience, O’Neil said.
Other shoppers say bare shelves have not greatly impacted their
shopping habits.
“There definitely aren’t as many products as
usual,” said fourth-year anthropology student Aissa Duey,
“But, there hasn’t been anything I have needed that
hasn’t been at Ralphs.”