Dozens of B&G Foods workers in Stoughton have voted to strike as the employer is “refusing to agree to a fair deal” amid contract negotiations, a union spokesperson said.
Teamsters Local 120 yesterday announced members voted to go on strike as they “fight for fair wages, affordable health care, and improved working conditions” at what they call an understaffed facility. Nearly all of the 59 workers in the unit voted in favor of striking.
“Teamsters are currently negotiating a new contract that would keep up with the rising cost of living in the Madison area,” the spokesperson said in an email, arguing “it is entirely up to the company to come to the table with a reasonable proposal, or Teamsters Local 120 members may be forced to strike.”
New Jersey-based B&G Foods, which has dozens of retail brands, reported more than $1.8 billion in net sales in fiscal year 2025. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the strike.
Workers at its Stoughton site want to include “successorship” language in a new contract to require any new owner of the facility to honor the existing union contract if the company is sold. The union says workers are pushing for this “stronger contract language to protect their future.”
The employees are also seeking guarantees from B&G Foods around automation, to make sure the technology isn’t deployed to replace jobs at the Stoughton facility. The company currently has a job posting on LinkedIn for an automation specialist position, though it’s at a different facility in Iowa.
Shaun Mullikin, a business agent with Teamsters Local 120, claims the company is taking advantage of its Stoughton workforce.
“Meanwhile, workers are dealing with long hours and rising costs, while the company refuses to make basic improvements,” Mullikin said in a statement. “Fair pay, decent health care, and reasonable hours shouldn’t be a fight — but right now, they are.”
Meanwhile, chief steward and union member Traci Gosda said the workers have “given so much to this company” and just want fairness and stability in return.
“We’re standing together to make sure this is a place where people can build a decent life, and not just get by,” she said.
See the union’s release.
