The Kroger Co.’s Delta division and United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 1529, based in Cordova, Tenn., have come to new labor agreement, according to a published report.

The agreement covers more than 9,000 workers in west Tennessee, Mississippi, and northwest Arkansas, the Memphis Business Journal reported, adding that higher starting wages and periodic raises were included in it.

Effective immediately, new full- and part-time employees now earn about $10 an hour, up from $7.65 and $7.35, respectively, with a yearly wage hike and health care benefits.

“We are pleased to reach an agreement that benefits our associates,” Kroger Delta division President Victor Smith said in a statement supplied to the Journal. “This new contract provides significant wage increases, maintains affordable Kroger-sponsored health care and continues investments in our associates’ pension fund for their retirement. I appreciate our associates for supporting this agreement and for the uplifting service they provide every day to our customers.”

The grocer has almost 6,200 full-time employees in the Memphis market, making the company the 10th largest employer in the area, the publication noted.

Employing nearly half a million associates who serve more than 11 million customers daily through a seamless digital shopping experience and 2,761 retail food stores under a variety of banners, Cincinnati-based Kroger is No. 2 on Progressive Grocer’s 2019 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States.