In an attempt to persuade Kellogg Company to negotiate a "fair contract" for its cereal plant employees, approximately 1,400 Kellogg cereal plant employees went on strike on Tuesday morning.
For quite some time, the Froot Loops cereal manufacturer has been discussing the payment and benefits parameters of a new contract with union workers - the current deal ended at midnight on Monday - in order to replace it.
Plants in Omaha, Nebraska, Battle Creek, Michigan, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and Memphis, Tennessee are among those affected by the strike.
It has been more than a year since the union and the Battle Creek-based company were unable to reach an agreement at the bargaining table, according to Daniel Osborn, president of the local union in Omaha.
The dispute covers a variety of salary and benefit issues, including the loss of premium health insurance, holiday and vacation pay, as well as reduced retirement benefits, among other things.
According to Kris Bahner, a press officer for the corporation, they are "saddened by the union's decision to strike."
Workers' compensation and benefits "are among the best in the industry," according to Ms. Bahner, who also stated that their offer includes increases in compensation and benefits for the personnel involved.
The company also said that it was putting in place contingency plans to deal with supply disruptions, which would include internal and third-party resources, among other things.
"The company continues to threaten that it would send additional jobs to Mexico if workers refuse to accept outrageous proposals that strip them of protections workers have had for decades," Anthony Shelton, president of the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, said.
"Our union stands in unshakable solidarity with our courageous brothers and sisters," Shelton wrote in his statement.
More than 600 employees at a Frito-Lay plant in Topeka, Kansas, walked off the job earlier this summer to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with working conditions during the outbreak, which included mandatory overtime. Workers ratified a new contract in July, bringing the walkout to a conclusion.
Recently, the same union called off a weeks-long strike at Nabisco, following a dispute with the company's owner, Mondelez International, over proposed changes to shift lengths and overtime regulations.
It was reported that the strike, which involved approximately a thousand workers, affected three bakeries and three minor sales distribution facilities owned by Mondelez International, which is based in Chicago.
