Some of the key sticking points are staffing shortages, health care reserves, price gouging, and eliminating seniority-based scheduling protections.

Unionized King Soopers workers in Broomfield and Boulder counties joined their peers in the Denver metro area to vote in favor of a strike authorization this week as the Kroger Co.-owned (NYSE: KR) grocery-store chain and the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 have failed to agree on terms for a new labor contract.

Union members kicked off a two-week strike of King Soopers stores across metro Denver early Thursday morning to protest what they say were unfair labor practices during contract negotiations. About 10,