By Randy Tucker
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Members of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union are expected to ratify a tentative agreement this weekend with three of the nation's leading grocers, including Kroger Co., which would end a 5-month-old labor dispute in Southern California.

"We feel that when our members sit down and look at the new agreement, they will feel that their sacrifice was worthwhile," spokeswoman Ellen Anreder said. She was speaking for five of seven California local unions affected by the strike and lockout of more than 70,000 workers, including 19,000 employees of Kroger-owned Ralphs stores.

"This is definitely an agreement we can live with," she said.

The three chains affected by the labor dispute - Kroger, Safeway and Albertson's - have been negotiating as a group. They sought concessions from employees on health-care costs, including worker contributions of $15 a month for family coverage by 2005 and a proposed two-tier wage system for future employees.

"The tentative agreement squarely addresses the challenging health-care costs and competitive issues we face," according to a joint statement from the companies. The companies lost an estimated $1.5 billion collectively because of the strike. Kroger reported a net loss exceeding $90 million in the third quarter.

Neither union nor grocery officials would discuss details of the proposed settlement. The dispute resonated nationwide because it was seen as a referendum on affordable employee health care.

But union officials were cautious not to cast the proposed Southern California pact, which they say "preserves affordable health care, maintains pensions and achieves job security," as a panacea for future disputes in other parts of the country.

"Every area has its own issues, and we're going to have to address those issues in specific contracts," Anreder said. "Our main concern is preserving affordable health care. There is a national health-care crisis, and it can't be dealt with by passing on costs to individual workers. We have to see change on a national level."

Industry watchers say there will be continued pressure on the traditional supermarket chains to cut health-care costs as Wal-Mart and other big discounters encroach on their territories.

And the issue will continue to be a sticking point in contract negotiations as the grocers' contracts with local unions throughout the country expire. That includes Kroger's contract with Local 1099 in Cincinnati, which expires Oct. 4.

"This is an issue that is not just going to go away," Anreder said.

But Kroger might be in the best position, according to Anreder, who said the dispute in Southern California could have been settled months ago if the union had been allowed to negotiate with Kroger alone.

Kroger has settled several labor disputes in other parts of the country in the past several months, including in northern Indiana, where about 300 union members of Local 700 at 15 Kroger stores approved a new three-year contract with the grocery chain in early February.

Kroger reached a settlement in late December and reopened 41 stores in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio that had been closed since Oct. 13, when 3,300 members of Local 400 went on strike over health care benefits and other issues.

Previously, Kroger reached agreement on two new labor contracts with the local union representing 6,500 union members in Memphis, western Tennessee and Mississippi.

And while an additional 4,000 workers in Central Indiana voted to strike in November after the company refused to negotiate their contract proposal, they have agreed to keep working until an agreement can be reached.

Anreder attributes it to the leadership of Kroger CEO Dave Dillon, who succeeded Joe Pichler as chief executive officer in June. From 1986 to 1995, he was responsible for the supermarket, convenience store and manufacturing operations of Dillon Cos., which Kroger bought in 1983.

"Dave Dillon is from the supermarket industry, and he understands what it's like to work in a supermarket," Anreder said. "He understands the need to take care of his work force."

Anreder said the biggest stumbling block in the Southern California negotiations was Safeway CEO Steve Burd, whom she described as a "bean counter."

The grocery workers' union and three chains settled on a tentative contract Thursday, after 16 straight days of negotiations. Before then, talks had broken down several times since the start of the dispute on Oct. 11.

Union leaders were slated to brief the clerks on the details of the proposed deal beginning this morning.

If a majority of the employees ratify the tentative contract, many could be back at work by midweek.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

E-mail rtucker@enquirer.com