A new payroll processing platform implemented across Kroger grocery stores has caused some workers to go unpaid or receive late or incomplete payments.
PORTLAND, Ore. — Employees at Fred Meyer and QFC, both Kroger-owned grocery store chains, report persistent problems getting paid for their work as payroll software issues continue to plague the grocery giant.
Since November, grocery store employees have reported missing paychecks or receiving delayed or partial payments.
One of those employees, Mike Papas, worked as a part-time cashier at a Fred Meyer store in Beaverton. He said he first noticed he didn’t receive a paycheck around Thanksgiving.
“It’s pay, screwups happen, so I figured this is a glitch or something is going on,” Papas said. “I’ll find out or figure this out.”
Papas said he didn’t receive that payment for two weeks. In the weeks to follow, he said he received incomplete payments, late payments and partial reimbursements with the subsequent paychecks.
He provided KGW with dozens of screenshots from his communications with company human resources representatives.
“(Kroger) had this problem nationwide, it’s inexcusable when people are trying to put food on their table and some are surviving paycheck to paycheck,” Papas said. “If it wasn’t for my family, I’d be hit a lot harder.”
At one point, Papas said he received what was promised to be a $500 gift card from the company in order to apologize for the payment issues. He said he checked its balance and the card had just $259 loaded onto it, a problem other Kroger employees reported as well.
Papas decided to quit his job on December 31.
“They were still messing up my pay, I was still having to chase down my pay on a weekly basis, and the hours I spent talking to management and sending emails — it was like having a second job,” he said.
The Kroger Company launched a new payroll processing platform across its stores in 2022, which a company spokesperson said created errors for a “small percentage of associates.”
A Fred Meyer spokesperson told KGW: “We apologize for the impact this has had on those associates. The vast majority of the issues have been resolved, and we are working diligently to resolve those that remain to ensure all associates are paid accurately and on a timely basis.”
The company’s explanation is insufficient, according to Dan Clay, the president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555. His union chapter represents thousands of Fred Meyer and QFC workers across Oregon and Washington.
“It’s extraordinary and shocking that a national corporation can’t get this fixed,” Clay said.
As for the union’s involvement, Clay said UFCW Local 555 continues to file grievances on behalf of workers and has taken the “unusual” step to direct employees to one of the multiple class action lawsuits filed against Kroger as a result of the payment problems.
Clay said that in Oregon, hundreds if not thousands of grocery workers have been impacted — and when they contact the union, he hears about their hardships.
“There is a significant number of people who have lost housing over this and it’s something that I frankly think is scandalous that Kroger can’t get straightened out, even after months,” Clay said.
He added that the issues seem to be “better” now than in November, as he’s hearing fewer new complaints, but he said the situation is nowhere close to “good” or resolved for many workers.
As of Friday night, a Fred Meyer spokesperson had not responded to KGW’s request for information about the number of employees affected or the reasons for why the technical payroll problems persist.
Clay asked shoppers at Fred Meyer and QFC to show extra grace to workers who might be missing their money.
“They aren’t even getting the most basic reward for work that everybody in our society works for, depending on where they are in this ongoing saga,” he said.
Papas said he has friends and former coworkers who are frustrated with their individual pay issues, but they’re hesitant to speak publicly about the situation.
“(At our stores) we have this thing called ‘Make it Right,'” Papas said. “Well Kroger, Fred Meyer, why can’t you make our pay right?”