Washington state Legal professional Normal Bob Ferguson on Monday sued to dam the proposed merger of Kroger and Albertsons, two of the nation’s largest grocery chains.
Within the go well with filed in King County Superior Court docket, Ferguson argued that the $25-billion deal would hurt customers and lift costs, The Seattle Times reported. It’s the primary regulatory transfer to cease the merger, in keeping with the outlet.
“This merger is bad for Washington shoppers and workers,” Ferguson stated in a information launch Monday. “Shoppers will have fewer choices and less competition, and, without a competitive marketplace, they will pay higher prices at the grocery store.”
Kroger and Albertsons have greater than 300 places within the state and account for greater than half of its grocery gross sales, in keeping with the go well with.
Kroger, which owns QFC and Fred Meyer and is predicated in Cincinnati, is looking for to amass Albertsons, which owns Safeway and Haggen and is predicated in Boise, Idaho.
The Federal Commerce Fee can also be anticipated to evaluate the merger subsequent month, Axios recently reported. And California can also be contemplating a lawsuit, Reuters reported final yr.
In a press release Monday, Kroger stated it was pushing again its timeline for closing the deal as a consequence of ongoing dialogue with regulators, together with state attorneys basic and the Federal Commerce Fee. It now anticipates the closure might happen within the first half of its fiscal yr, which ends in mid-August.
“While this is longer than we originally thought, we knew it was a possibility and … accounted for such potential timing,” the assertion stated.
The corporate claimed the merger will convey decrease costs for customers.
Ferguson’s lawsuit was endorsed by United Meals & Industrial Employees, Native 3000, which represents Kroger and Albertsons workers in Washington, northeast Oregon and northern Idaho, The Seattle Occasions reported.
Nevertheless, an evaluation final yr from the left-leaning Financial Coverage Institute concluded that if the merger proceeds, greater than 700,000 grocery staff in 50 U.S. cities would see lower pay, with a collective loss totaling over $330 million.
“Workers, shoppers and our communities need to prevent this proposed mega-merger from taking place,” Yasmin Ashur, a union member who works in an Albertsons grocery retailer, stated in a union assertion Monday.
Final yr, looking for to clear a path for a merger, Kroger and Albertsons introduced plans to sell more than 400 stores and different belongings to C&S Wholesale Grocers, a wholesale grocery provider, amid issues about market dominance.
Kroger and Albertsons agreed to merge in 2022. The grocery chains say they need to merge to compete with Walmart, Amazon and different main firms which have stepped into the grocery enterprise.
