Fresh Express has announced that it completed negotiations for its Salinas workers, a day after employees walked out on the job in protest.

An agreement was reached with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 5 and renewal of its contract for the Salinas facility workforce, according to a Fresh Express statement issued early Wednesday.

“We value our entire Fresh Express workforce and are very pleased to have reached agreement on a new contract in Salinas,” Fresh Express President John P. Olivo said. “At Fresh Express, we believe it is of the utmost importance to treat all of our employees with fairness, honesty and respect at all times.”

Pete Maturino, agricultural director for the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 5, which represents Fresh Express workers, confirmed that an agreement was reached yesterday evening between the union and Fresh Express. He declined to go over specifics.

Per Maturino, workers returned to work Tuesday.

Around 2 p.m. Tuesday, hundreds of Fresh Express employees walked off the job in Salinas, saying they had been in negotiations for six months and not received a contract to their satisfaction.

Maturino said Tuesday that the walkout wasn't authorized by the union and that the current contract has a no-strike clause in effect.

Multiple current and former employees said Tuesday that they were walking out over what they say are unsafe conditions at work and dissatisfaction over pay.

In 2017, about 2,000 workers at Taylor Farms walked off the job in a one-day unsanctioned strike for a $2.50 hourly raise, according to Jorge Valenzuela, a Teamsters Local 890 representative.

Teamsters Local 890 was in the middle of negotiations on the workers' behalf at the time of the unsanctioned strike.

Taylor Farms workers then were still under contract and chose to go on strike, ultimately getting a $1.50 increase in the summer of 2017 and another $1 raise in January 2018.

This story was updated with additional information about the contract.

Chelcey Adami is the local content editor for The Salinas Californian. She can be reached at cadami@thecalifornian.com and 831-277-8763. To support local journalism like this, please subscribe.