For almost a year now, our frontline teammates at Safeway have been true champions for your communities. Every day, you come to work with an inspiring passion to serve Alberta families – and our customers have told us loud and clear just how much they appreciate you.

Through this terrible pandemic, we worked through a long, drawn-out labour negotiation process in Alberta. We’re proud that we finally reached a fair and equitable deal for all this past summer. A deal that was overwhelming supported with a 90% ratification rate by our teammates. A deal that will ensure we continue investing meaningfully in Safeway and welcome FreshCo into the right markets for our customers. We’ve invested millions in the Safeway network and we will continue to progress to the promised $200 million dollar mark by 2025.

With all of this tremendous momentum, it is confusing to hear the recent criticisms from Tom Hesse and the Union Leadership who are campaigning against the deal that they negotiated last summer. This type of communication from the Union only leads to confusion and unnecessary anxiety amongst our hardworking teammates.

We can feel it, the spirit of Safeway is back in action. The Safeway brand is back to celebrating its legacy as Alberta’s hometown grocer, who truly supports local communities, suppliers, charitable causes and families. We are so happy to see the entire network thrive as one team.

We want to be very clear with our Safeway teammates. We are completely committed to supporting the Safeway network in Alberta so it can continue to thrive and reclaim its position as Alberta’s number one grocer. We are also completely committed to ensuring we have the right stores, in the right markets and in some cases, that will mean opening FreshCo stores. We have and will continue to treat all of our teammates fairly and respectfully through this process to secure a strong future for all of us.

There is no room for these useless politics in our stores. We need to stay focused on what is most important – our customers, teammates and our communities. This attempt at creating uncertainty and distraction is particularly disappointing.

It’s important to us that you have access to accurate information. If you have any questions or concerns, please get in touch with your HR Business Partner or Store Manager – they’re always there to help.

We are hopeful that UFCW 401 will join us, as they have in the past, to refocus on what counts: supporting our teammates and customers through this terrible pandemic, strengthening Safeway and bringing FreshCo to Alberta.