On Sunday evening, in what it called a “powerful victory,” the United Food & Commercial workers union (UFCW) reached a tentative agreement with Stop & Shop management to end a strike by 31,000 workers in over 240 grocery stores in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, which began April 11. In hindsight, the 11-day strike, the largest retail strike in the U.S. since 2003, could turn out to be one of the most important work stoppages of the past few decades.

The workers struck to resist demands from the company – which is owned by Dutch giant, Royal Ahold Delhaize – for sweeping reductions in health care and pension benefits and reduced pay for Sunday work. But, according to the union, under Sunday’s three-year settlement, existing health care and pension plans and time-and-a-half for Sunday work are maintained.

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Stop & Shop demands for health care and pension concessions from some of its lowest paid workers were not borne out of financial necessity. Ahold Delhaize is highly profitable in the United States. In 2018, it generated sales of $44 billion from all its U.S. food businesses (the company also owns the Food Lion, Giant, and Hannaford supermarket chains, and the Peapod grocery delivery service), with Stop & Shop supermarkets contributing about $8 billion of that total. The U.S. accounts for approximately two-thirds of the Dutch multinationals overall revenues. Rather, the company was seeking to claw back hard won worker benefits in order to be more like its non-union, low road rivals.

Strong Community Support for the Strikers

The strike enjoyed strong support among Stop & Shop workers, other unions, state and national lawmakers, and the New England public. According to the UFCW, virtually no Stop & Shop workers returned to work, while members of the Teamsters and Retail Wholesale Department Store Union (who deliver for Coke, Pepsi and other brands) refused to cross picket lines and make deliveries. Several presidential candidates expressed support for the strikers. Sen. Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenDimon: Wealth tax 'almost impossible to do' CNN's Don Lemon: 'Blow up the entire system' remark taken out of context Democrats shoot down talk of expanding Supreme Court MORE of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersOutrage erupts over Breonna Taylor grand jury ruling Dimon: Wealth tax 'almost impossible to do' Grand jury charges no officers in Breonna Taylor death MORE of Vermont have joined workers on the picket line. Alongside Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Democratic groups using Bloomberg money to launch M in Spanish language ads in Florida Harris faces pivotal moment with Supreme Court battle MORE addressed a large rally in Dorchester, Mass., telling the crowd that the company’s efforts to undermine workers’ health and retirement security were “morally wrong.” Sens. Cory Booker Cory Anthony BookerBipartisan praise pours in after Ginsburg's death DHS opens probe into allegations at Georgia ICE facility Democratic lawmakers call for an investigation into allegations of medical neglect at Georgia ICE facility MORE of New Jersey and Amy Klobuchar Amy KlobucharSocial media platforms put muscle into National Voter Registration Day Battle lines drawn on precedent in Supreme Court fight Sunday shows - Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death dominates MORE of Minnesota, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro Julian CastroSanders says Democrats should have given more speaking time to progressives Castro says DNC should have put more Latino speakers on stage from beginning Jill Biden defends husband's cognitive ability from Trump attacks: 'It's ridiculous' MORE and Mayor Pete Buttigieg Pete ButtigiegThe Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - GOP closes ranks to fill SCOTUS vacancy by November Buttigieg stands in as Pence for Harris's debate practice Hillicon Valley: FBI, DHS warn that foreign hackers will likely spread disinformation around election results | Social media platforms put muscle into National Voter Registration Day | Trump to meet with Republican state officials on tech liability shield MORE of South Bend, Ind., also sent strong messages of support. Even two Connecticut Republican politicians, Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton and Rep. Dave Yaccarino, came out in support of the strikers.

During the strike, formerly loyal Stop & Shop customers deserted the grocery chain in droves – visits were down by an astonishing 75 percent -- thereby driving up business at its closest competitors, Shaws and Star Market. Some New England rabbis stated it “wasn’t Kosher” to patronize Stop & Shop while the strike continued. During the busy Easter retail period, these developments could have signaled financial peril for the company. Realizing the depth of community support for the strikers, Stop & Shop management repeatedly attempted to reassure the public that it supported its “valuable associates” -- workers who have often given decades of service to the company -- even as it moved to weaken their health and pension benefits.

National Implications of the Stop & Shop Strike

The Stop & Shop strike joins a growing list of successful work stoppages throughout the nation. In recent months, teachers in both red and blue states, Marriott hotel workers and several others have won strikes, in most cases with the benefit of strong community support. The stakes a were extremely high for the Stop & Shop strikers, and community support, no matter how deep, did not by itself guarantee victory. The company initially appeared resolutely determined to cut costs, claiming it needed the sweeping concessions because of intense competition in the grocery sector. But if Stop & Shop management had succeeded in gutting the health care and pension benefits of its unionized workforce in New England, it would likely have adopted these tactics actions in other states, and could have encouraged other unionized grocery chains to pursue similar “morally wrong” bargaining tactics. Ahold Delhaize U.S. also owns almost 200 unionized Stop & Shop stores in New York state and hundreds more Food Giant stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia.

In recent months, several unionized retailers have sought to emulate the competitive strategies of large non-union retailers like Walmart, Target and Dollar General, which mostly provide workers with low pay and lousy benefits. Kroger, the country’s largest unionized grocery chain, has taken a tough line with its unionized workers, claiming that the arrival of Amazon (which purchased the Whole Foods grocery chain for almost $14 billion in 2017) is a “game changer,” even though it currently faces little direct competition from the e-commerce behemoth. Unionized grocery chains have adopted these hardball tactics before. Fifteen years ago, unionized grocery chains in California told workers that competition from Walmart required sweeping concessions in pay and benefits.

For many working- and middle-class Americans, unions offer the best, and sometimes only, hope for decent health care and reliable retirement security. Millions of Americans are now working long into their retirement years because they lack adequate savings, decent pensions and affordable health care benefits. Since 1985, the number of working pensioners has almost doubled.

It was vital that the UFCW did not allow Stop & Shop to undermine its workers’ retirement and health security. Even in a strong economy, a management victory may well have sparked a faster “race to the bottom” in wages and benefits for grocery workers. Striking Stop & Shop struck for a fair settlement. We should welcome their success in protecting decent health care and pension benefits.

John Logan is Director and Professor of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University.