Statement by UFCW Executive Vice President Pat O’Neill Regarding Tesco’s Announcement on US Venture, Fresh & Easy

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--“Tesco’s announcement today forces thousands of Fresh & Easy workers in California, Arizona, and Nevada to face a holiday season filled with uncertainty and fear if their jobs and stores will still be there in the new year. These job losses could have been avoided if Tesco had chosen to engage with community stakeholders and its customers to address the many underlying problems and warning signs of the troubled Fresh & Easy model.

“We call on Tesco and Fresh & Easy executives to include all community and labor stakeholders as the company undergoes this review process.”

“We call on Tesco and Fresh & Easy executives to include all community and labor stakeholders as the company undergoes this review process.”

The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) represents more than 1.3 million workers, primarily in the retail and meatpacking, food processing and poultry industries. The UFCW protects the rights of workers and strengthens America’s middle class by fighting for health care reform, living wages, retirement security, safe working conditions and the right to unionize so that working men and women and their families can realize the American Dream. For more information about the UFCW’s effort to protect workers’ rights and strengthen America’s middle class, go to ufcw.org and join us on Facebook: UFCWinternational and follow us on Twitter @UFCW.