Here we go again. Union workers of the Ralphs, Albertsons, and Vons supermarket chain authorized a strike Monday with a tremendous vote of 95%. The workers are seeking to get rid of the two-tier system which was established after a 141-day strike in March of 2004. The chain, however, wants to create a third tier which would entitle new workers to less pay than those hired after the 2004 strike.

The companies have threatened a lock out if the union pickets at any of the stores. I would have never expected this to happen again, but the chain that owns all these stores is putting itself in some really hot water. The first time this happened, they lost $1.5B. If they didn’t reason so irrationally, I doubt they would have lost anywhere near that. Time will tell whether they will repeat their mistake again.