Kellogg’s workers in several U.S. cities, including Memphis, are on strike. The strike began on Tuesday, October 5th, when the master contract between the Kellogg Company and the local Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International unions expired, after a one-year extension that was put in place in 2020.
“I’ve been with Kellogg’s for 20 years,” says Kevin Bradshaw, vice president of the BCTGM 252G. “I work in the packaging department that actually ships out the finished product all over the world.”
“They forced our hand to be on strike,” says Bradshaw. “The contract expired in 2020, but we went to impasse and we had a year extension on that contract.”
Workers have been on a picket line at the local Kellogg’s factory at 168 Frisco Avenue since the strike began.
“We are disappointed by the union’s decision to strike,” says Kellogg spokesperson Kris Bahner.
“We worked through the pandemic, seven days a week. They talk about $120,000 that we make, but they didn’t tell you that that’s overtime,” Bradshaw says. “We worked through the pandemic, we had over a third of our plant that was infected or affected in some way by Covid-19, and we still showed up to work seven days a week, 12, 16 hours a day.”
Bradshaw says that after a lock-out in 2013, the union and Kellogg Company agreed to a “progressive format” for wages and benefits for new employees, who would be hired at a lower level of pay but with a path to top pay.
“Only thing we want — we’re not asking for more money. We’re asking you to continue paying everyone who works at Kellogg’s the same amount of money, same amount of benefits and insurance. Don’t treat anybody different. Equal pay for equal work.
“We make 85 percent of the Frosted Flakes in America right here in Memphis. We make cereal in Memphis cheaper than anywhere else in the world,” Bradshaw says. “We make safe, quality food because we eat the food. We take the food home to our families.”
The full statement from the Kellogg Company is below:
Kellogg Company and the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union are engaged in negotiations to finalize a master labor contract for our four U.S. Ready to Eat Cereal (RTEC) plants. We are disappointed by the union’s decision to strike. Kellogg provides compensation and benefits for our U.S. RTEC employees that are among the industry’s best. Our offer includes increases to pay and benefits for our employees, while helping us meet the challenges of the changing cereal business.
The majority of employees working under this Master Contract enjoy a CPG (consumer packaged goods) industry-leading level of pay and benefits, which include above-market wages and pension or 401k. The average 2020 earnings for the majority of RTEC employees was $120,000.
Most employees under this contract have unparalleled, no-cost comprehensive health insurance, while less senior employees have the same health insurance as our salaried employees, but with much lower employee contributions.
Our proposals not only maintain these industry-leading level of pay and benefits, but offer significant increases in wages, benefits and retirement.
The Company has not proposed moving any RTEC volume or jobs outside of the U.S. as part of these negotiations.
We remain committed to achieving a fair and competitive contract that recognizes the important work of our employees and helps ensure the long-term success of our plants and the Company. We remain ready, willing and able to continue negotiations and hope we can reach an agreement soon. For more information, please visit https://kelloggsnegotiations.com/
