Kroger Contract Approved

{Charleston, West Virginia}...Union members of United Food and Commercial Workers have approved a new three-year contract with Kroger Co. covering 3,893 workers at 41 stores in West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. Members approved the contract Monday by a 2-to-1 margin. Kroger Mid-Atlantic Division President Jay Cummins said Tuesday that the contract provides wage increases, affordable health care and a company-funded pension. The union says the contract increases workers' total compensation by an average of $3.10 an hour over the three-year period. The 41 stores include operations in Charleston, Morgantown, Clarksburg, Beckley, Huntington and Parkersburg in West Virginia; Proctorville, Belpre, and Marietta in Ohio and Ashland, Ky.