Mediator in California grocery labor talks laid off by DOGE

Isael Hermosillo a mediator negotiating labor contracts for California s grocers got bad news in the early hours of March before he even had a chance to drop off his children at school near his Alhambra home He got a text from his supervisor asking that he cancel work and jump onto a Zoom call by a m That s when Hermosillo learned that his job and much of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Function agency were terminated RELATED Why Elon Musk installed his top lieutenants at a federal agency you likely haven t heard of That was my last day announced the -year agency veteran Going from mediators to five was not within the spectrum of what I thought was going to happen I thought the number of mediators was going to be cut but I did not think that the agency would be per se deleted The nearly -year-old FMCS was dismantled by billionaire Elon Musk s Department of Governing body Efficiency or DOGE which was set up by the Trump administration to cut spending and jobs DOGE has slashed nearly federal jobs at agencies in two months according to the staffing firm Challenger The timing of Hermosillo s termination came not long after the labor contract with the grocery chains expired March for Southern California s unionized workers Isael Hermosillo a mediator with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Facility was negotiating labor talks between the United Food and Commercial Workers and several supermarket chains when he was laid off by the Trump administration on March Photo courtesy of Isael Hermosillo Negotiations at the Buena Park offices of United Food and Commercial Workers Local were ongoing with lawyers from Albertsons Cos which also owns Vons and Pavilions and Ralphs the largest supermarket unit of Kroger Co Related Articles Gilroy teachers union and school district reach tentative deal Santa Clara County to explore creating a know-your-rights training for fast food workers Contract talks between Fremont teachers district fail as accomplishable strike looms The strike was our last resort VTA union has lost its leverage to push for new contract president says Fremont facilitator union threatens feasible strike A handful of sessions were held separately with San Bernardino-based Stater Bros Markets These aren t the B-team lawyers These are the A-team lawyers reported Hermosillo who earned his law degree from Syracuse University College of Law where Joe Biden also graduated in The agreement that eventually gets ironed out is used by supermarkets across the country as a template In total seven UFCW local unions from Santa Barbara to San Diego are working on new three-year UFCW labor contracts with several supermarket chains Those unionized supermarkets include Albertsons Ralphs Stater Encino-based Gelson s Markets and Super A Foods a family-owned supermarket chain based in Commerce that caters to Latino and Asian shoppers in the Los Angeles area Gelson s and Super A Foods have historically gone along with the labor contracts negotiated by Albertsons Ralphs and Stater Andrea Zinder UFCW Local president explained that Hermosillo s firing is part of the Trump administration s effort to undermine the collective bargaining process To keep talks moving forward the UFCW locals in Southern California and the supermarket chains are paying Hermosillo a per diem wage to continue with the negotiations Depending on how the talks progress a strike authorization vote by the UFCW could happen in late May or early June if things don t really change and move in a good direction reported Zinder adding that the two sides remain far apart on wages benefits and job classifications Spokespersons for the larger supermarket chains were not directly available for comment on the status of the discussions or Hermosillo s new role Jim Amen president of Super A Foods disclosed he was aware of Hermosillo s hiring but that he s more concerned about the slow pace of the talks I don t like how they do this dance after the contracts expired Amen stated They haven t even talked economics yet but they do this every time William Resh associate professor of community program and management with the USC s Sol Price School of Citizens Plan declared the termination of Hermosillo and the dismantling of the federal agency isn t good for anyone Mediators are meant to be kind of impartial arbitrators The loss of an FMCS arbitrator could create inefficiencies in the industry Resh noted He cited court shopping by either side as one likely outcome where either unions or an employer could search for favorable court venues to get a ruling or cause disputes to drag on longer than they should These fights could become longer and more contentious he mentioned What s next On Monday April UFCW joined a dozen major unions to file a lawsuit seeking to block the Trump administration from shutting down the federal agency The lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court stated that efforts to dismantle FMCS violate Congress constitutional powers to create or dissolve such agencies Though not a party to the lawsuit the -year-old Hermosillo declared that hollowing out FMCS is a clear violation of the U S Constitution I hope one day the matter goes in front of the Supreme Court and there will be specific decisions that move things the other way because what this administration is doing not only to this agency but several others is impairing it so much that it would literally take generations to repair Related Articles Gilroy teachers union and school district reach tentative deal Santa Clara County to explore creating a know-your-rights training for fast food workers Contract talks between Fremont teachers district fail as realizable strike looms The strike was our last resort VTA union has lost its leverage to push for new contract president says Fremont coach union threatens accomplishable strike On Tuesday April over grocery store workers represented by seven California UFCW local unions marched from Vons to Stater Bros in La Verne Courtesy of UFCW Local