Workers end strike at King Soopers grocery stores and both sides agree to resume bargaining

More than 10,000 King Soopers grocery workers across the Denver area ended their 12-day strike late Monday after union leaders said they secured some basic protections for returning workers and agreed to resume bargaining with the Kroger-owned chain. Employees and management had hit a wall in contract negotiations over staffing and health care, but it was the Kroger-owned supermarket chain’s allegedly unfair negotiating practices that pushed workers to go on strike at 77 stores in Denver and its suburbs earlier this month. Kim Cordova, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7, said the union will return to negotiations with an agreement that Kroger can't implement any offer for at least 100 days and can't lock out workers out during that time.