UFCW Named to Creditors Committee in Penn Traffic Bankruptcy
This week, the Office of the United States Trustee appointed the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) to the creditors committee in the bankruptcy of Syracuse, N.Y.-based grocer Penn Traffic. The union is representing the interests of the grocer’s current and former workers in New York state and western and eastern Pennsylvania, whom it said are owed an estimated $9.56 million by the company.
According to the UFCW, the affected regions “cannot afford — now more than ever — to lose thousands of good jobs. The UFCW is in ongoing discussions with Penn Traffic and potential investors to find solutions that keep as many stores as possible open. Grocery stores are integral to our neighborhoods as both businesses and employers. A reckless fire sale would cause lasting damage to the communities and working families.”
Over 90 percent of Penn Traffic’s 5,000 employees belong to the UFCW. The financially embattled company, which last month filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the third time in a decade, and has since disclosed in documents filed with the New York State Labor Department that it intends to close 53 location by mid-February, currently operates over 100 grocery stores in Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, and Vermont under the P&C, Quality Markets and BiLo Foods banners.
According to the UFCW, the affected regions “cannot afford — now more than ever — to lose thousands of good jobs. The UFCW is in ongoing discussions with Penn Traffic and potential investors to find solutions that keep as many stores as possible open. Grocery stores are integral to our neighborhoods as both businesses and employers. A reckless fire sale would cause lasting damage to the communities and working families.”
Over 90 percent of Penn Traffic’s 5,000 employees belong to the UFCW. The financially embattled company, which last month filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the third time in a decade, and has since disclosed in documents filed with the New York State Labor Department that it intends to close 53 location by mid-February, currently operates over 100 grocery stores in Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, and Vermont under the P&C, Quality Markets and BiLo Foods banners.