Kroger Bans BLM Buttons, Prompting Unfair Labor Practice Charges

A Kroger Co. ban on Black Lives Matter buttons in two of its supermarket chains has brought ire—and unfair labor practice charges—from a United Food and Commercial Workers local representing some 13,000 employees in the Puget Sound region of Washington state.

The company recently began ordering workers at its QFC and Fred Meyer stores to remove the buttons that were distributed by UFCW Local 21, the union said in a Tuesday statement. “After weeks of attempts to resolve the problem internally, UFCW filed formal grievances with the company and an unfair labor practice charge under federal labor law,” the statement ...