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Strike against regional distributor Bigfoot Beverages reaches third week

A strike at the regional drink distributor Bigfoot Beverages has entered its third week.

On Monday, a giant inflatable pig, as well as a dozen Bigfoot Beverage employees greeted passing drivers, as well as trucks leaving the company’s Eugene location.

The Teamsters called a strike over retirement benefits. Bigfoot Beverages has proposed switching to a 401(k), while workers want to continue with their pension plan.

Edwin Powell, a truck driver and a union representative, said employees have been picketing 24-hours a day for weeks.

“We're more than happy to talk anytime, anywhere,” Powell said. “We just want to get back to work. That's what it comes down to. But, our contract needs to have the pension in it to have a negotiation and the company doesn't want to agree [to] that.”

The union has also filed an unfair labor practice against Bigfoot Beverages - arguing the company had intimidated its workers.

A representative of the company was not available for comment Monday, but in a press release posted to its website, Bigfoot Beverages has said it was disappointed the union decided to strike, arguing a 401(k) is a positive, more flexible alternative.

Workers are also picketing at Bigfoot’s Roseburg, Bend, Newport and Coos Bay locations, according to a union news release.

Rebecca Hansen-White joined the KLCC News Department in November, 2023. Her journalism career has included stops at Spokane Public Radio, The Spokesman-Review, and The Columbia Basin Herald.