Over 600 Smart & Final warehouse workers go on strike in Commerce and Riverside – Daily News

Smart & Final Extra! is seen at 32937 Temecula Parkway. Workers at Smart & Final warehouses in Commerce and Riverside began striking on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, due to plans to close those unionized warehouses and open a lower-pay warehouse in Rancho Cucamonga. (Photo courtesy of Smart & Final)

More than 600 workers at two Smart & Final warehouses in Southern California began a strike on Wednesday and planned to picket on Thursday to protest alleged mass layoffs and other alleged unfair labor practices.

The workers are represented by Teamsters Local 630, which says the grocery chain – owned by Commerce-based Chedraui USA – plans to close the unionized Smart & Final warehouses in Commerce and Riverside. They added that workers would be forced to reapply for jobs at a new warehouse in Rancho Cucamonga at $10 to $12 less per hour.

“The clock is ticking for Chedraui/Smart & Final to get things right,” said Lou Villalvazo, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 630.

“The company continues to engage in unfair labor practices with no regard for its workers. With the busy summer months approaching, the company is facing not only a moral crisis but also a logistical crisis. It must act now to guarantee our members their jobs, fair wages, respect and a fair contract. We will not stand idly by while these workers are exploited.”