SAN FRANCISCO — Forty-five members of UNITE HERE Local 2 at the Ghirardelli Chocolate store here, a popular tourist attraction, began a three-day strike July 30 against the bosses’ proposal to increase their healthcare costs. “Who’s gonna win? Local 2!” they chanted in front of the usually busy store full of candy and ice cream treats.
The strike caught Ghirardelli by surprise. The company closed the store on day one of the strike, but reopened for days two and three with far fewer customers, workers said. Many families would not cross the picket line.
“We need our healthcare,” Kay Bradley, 19, who buses dishes, told the Militant as she handed out flyers to passersby. “While proposing to cut workers’ healthcare, they are refusing to disclose how much they receive from a 6% ‘healthcare fee’ they charge customers,” a Local 2 flyer said. “Where does that 6% go?” Bradley asked.
The workers have been fighting for a new contract for more than a year.