King Soopers spokeswoman Jessica Trowbridge said in an email Monday that the union “continues to choose rhetoric and confusion to distract from their failure to represent their members and allow the company to put more money in their paychecks.”
“We spent the first day in negotiations listening to corporate executives scream, yell at the members and show utter disdain and disrespect for the workers,” Kim Cordova, union president, said in a video on the UFCW Local 7 Facebook page. 6 when the union rejected a proposal it described as “riddled with concessions” that King Soopers wants from workers. It was the first bargaining session since Jan. Company representatives said the Union of Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 hadn’t offered any new proposals on wages, health care or pensions Friday. Heading into the fourth straight day of talks, union representatives said there had been little progress even though they “moved more than 12 offers back and forth” with the company. The Mercury open their season at home that night against the Las Vegas Aces.Īssociated Press writer Doug Feinberg in New York contributed to this report.Digital Replica Edition Home Page Close MenuĪs Denver-area King Soopers workers walked the picket lines for a sixth day, negotiators for the union and Colorado’s largest grocery chain met Monday in contract talks that have been marked by each side accusing the other of unfair labor practices and refusing to bargain in good faith. 42.Īll 12 teams will have the decal on their home courts starting with the season opener Friday night. The decal will feature Griner’s initials, BG, as well as her No. Meanwhile, the WNBA announced Tuesday that it would honor Griner with a floor decal and allow the Mercury to pay her without it counting against the team’s cap. last week secured the release of Marine veteran Trevor Reed as part of a prisoner swap that also resulted in a convicted Russian drug trafficker being freed from prison in the U.S.īesides Griner, another American regarded as unjustly detained in Russia is Paul Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan who was arrested in December 2018 while visiting for a friend's wedding and was later sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage-related charges his family says are bogus.ĮSPN first reported the classification in Griner's case. It was unclear what prompted the shift in approach to Griner's case, though President Joe Biden's administration had been under pressure from members of Congress and others to make her release a priority. government on Brittney’s case, working together to get her home safe and as soon as possible.” The WNBA is in constant communication with the U.S. The WNBA released a statement Tuesday night saying: “Today’s news on Brittney Griner is a positive development and a next step to getting her home. government has now determined that BG is being wrongfully detained we are hopeful that their efforts will be significant, swift and successful.” “It is time for her to come home," Ogwumike added. The president of the WNBA players' union, Nneka Ogwumike, noted in a separate statement that “it has been 75 days that our friend, teammate, sister, Brittney Griner, has been wrongfully detained in Russia.” “Brittney has been detained for 75 days and our expectation is that the White House do whatever is necessary to bring her home,” said Griner’s agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas. officials have shifted supervision of her case to a State Department section - the Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs - that is focused on negotiating for the release of hostages and other Americans classified as being wrongfully detained in other countries. officials had stopped short of classifying the Phoenix Mercury player as wrongfully detained and said instead that their focus was on ensuring that she had access in jail to American consular affairs officials. Griner was detained at an airport in February after Russian authorities said a search of her bag revealed vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis.
government will continue to undertake efforts to provide appropriate support to Ms. WASHINGTON (AP) - The Biden administration has determined that WNBA star Brittney Griner is being wrongfully detained in Russia, meaning the United States will more aggressively work to secure her release even as the legal case against her plays out, the State Department said Tuesday.