Workers who make Kellogg cereals including Corn Flakes, Frosted Flakes and Froot Loops went on strike on Tuesday at factories in Michigan, Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.
“For more than a year throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, Kellogg workers around the country have been working long, hard hours, day in and day out, to produce Kellogg ready-to-eat cereals for American families,” said Anthony Shelton, president of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, which represents the striking workers.
His statement added, “We are proud of our Kellogg members for taking a strong stand against this company’s greed and we will support them for as long as it takes to force Kellogg to negotiate a fair contract that rewards them for their hard work and dedication and protects the future of all Kellogg workers.”
The issues being negotiated include job protections, vacation and holiday pay, and health care. The plants are in Battle Creek, Mich., the headquarters of Kellogg and its home since the company’s founding in 1906; Omaha; Lancaster, Pa.; and Memphis. About 1,400 workers are on strike.
“We are disappointed by the union’s decision to strike,” said Kris Bahner, a press officer for the company. The workers’ pay and benefits “are among the industry’s best,” Ms. Bahner said in a statement, adding that “our offer includes increases to pay and benefits for our employees, while helping us meet the challenges of the changing cereal business.”
Her statement added: “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.”
Mr. Shelton said in his statement that his union “stands in unwavering solidarity with our courageous brothers and sisters who are on strike.”
The same union recently ended a weekslong strike at Nabisco, after clashing with its owner, Mondelez International, over proposed changes to shift lengths and overtime rules. The strike, by roughly a thousand workers, affected three bakeries and three small sales distribution facilities, according to Mondelez, which is based in Chicago.