A&P Supermarkets in bankruptcy

Cleanup on aisle 11.
A&P Supermarkets filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on December 6, putting 58 city stores, including 15 in Queens, in jeopardy of shutting down.
In an effort to bargain for a longer shelf life and avoid any possible closures, the state’s largest grocery workers union is seeking assistance from City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 1500 drafted separate letters to Quinn and Bloomberg, asking for a meeting to discuss the “tremendous negative effects on the economy of New York City” should there be any store closures or layoffs.
“The food desert crisis that this city currently faces would reach unimaginable levels without these 58 stores,” said UFCW Local 1500 President Bruce Both. “These 58 stores provide neighborhoods throughout the city with essential building blocks for economic security: good food, good jobs and good health.”
Patrick Purcell, a UFCW representative, said that about 10 locations in Queens with close to 1,500 workers would be affected by any closures. He also said that were these stores to close, transfers would be made available – however, supermarket workers often live in the same neighborhood they work, which makes transferring a hardship.
“The impact this could have on the community is huge,” said Purcell, whose union is based in Queens Village. “Supermarkets are a solid middle class job. They have decent salaries and benefits that you’re not going to find at another job. They need to be protected.”
A&P president and chief executive officer Sam Martin assured customers that all stores will remain fully stocked and open with no interruption in service. He also insisted that the Chapter 11 filing was merely a necessary step in the company’s turnaround plan.
“We have taken this difficult but necessary step to enable A&P to fully implement our comprehensive financial and operational restructuring,” said Martin. “While we have made substantial progress on the operational and merchandising aspects of our turnaround plan, we have concluded that we could not complete our turnaround with availing ourselves of Chapter 11.”
The 58 A&P stores in the city operate under the Pathmark, Waldbaum’s and Food Emporium banners and employ close to 6,500 workers throughout the five boroughs. Besides the 15 in Queens, A&P has 20 stores in Manhattan, 12 in Brooklyn, six in Staten Island and five in the Bronx.