Ralph's Thriftway lone Plan-B holdout despite losses

author : Janet Blanding topic : Plan B | Ralph's / Bayview Thriftway

by Janet Blanding

The boycott of Ralph's and Bayview is working. Financial losses at the stores are putting pressure on Stormans Inc. to change their discriminatory policy against stocking Plan B emergency contraception. While the Pharmacy Board investigates complaints filed by Olympia women who were unable to fill prescriptions at four local pharmacies last summer, three out of four of those pharmacies are now stocking the morning after pill. The sole holdout: Ralph's Thriftway.

A boycott gives consumers the power to express their ethical values in practice. As changes in policy concerning emergency contraception evolve on a national and state level, our local battle serves as a reminder to the state Pharmacy Board and legislature that the rights of women and patients are strongly supported by the Olympia community.

"A boycott gives you a chance to have a public sphere discussion about what the responsibilities of government are to ensure equality and justice," said Sarah Ryan, instructor in labor studies at the Evergreen State College and longtime union activist. "As consumers, citizens in community, we can boycott as an expression of our personal ethics."

Gains in consumer access to emergency contraception have occurred since the boycott began. The FDA approved over-the-counter status of Plan B emergency contraception in August, and Barr Pharmaceuticals started shipping the medication, now packaged for distribution in pharmacies without a prescription, in mid-November. Women aged 18 and over across the country can walk into almost any pharmacy and obtain emergency contraception immediately, without the delay and expense of obtaining a physician's prescription. All major national drug store chains have announced that they are stocking Plan B.

On the state level, the Board of Pharmacy has abandoned the proposed administrative code drafted at its meeting of June 1, 2006, that would have allowed pharmacists to refuse to fill any prescription for any reason. The Board of Pharmacy is now engaged in the process of adopting two codes which women's advocates feel are much more appropriate. The new code will require that all legal, clinically appropriate prescriptions be filled at any pharmacy; if an individual pharmacist has a moral objection to filling a particular prescription, someone else must be present at the pharmacy who will dispense it, to ensure that patient care is not compromised by the personal ethics of pharmacy personnel.

Local access to emergency contraception has improved, as well. Albertsons/Sav-On on Pacific Avenue in Lacey, where five women were unable to fill prescriptions for Plan B in June -- July of 2006 because it was not stocked, now carries the medication. The same is true of the Rite-Aid on Sleater-Kinney, and the Walgreen's in Lacey; both stores had single complaints filed against them because they were out of stock, on one occasion each. Whether these improvements in stocking are due to the visibility of the Ralph's boycott or to pending complaints with the Board of Pharmacy is difficult to assess. Boycott organizers are quick to note, however, that even as the Ralph's/Bayview boycott has not yet persuaded Stormans to change its policy about the morning after pill, the media coverage has made many other business owners aware of the boycott. Stormans' admitted financial losses undoubtedly serve as a deterrent to other pharmacy owners who might otherwise consider pursuing a similar policy of denying women access to appropriate health care.

As many Olympians continue to boycott Ralph's and Bayview, other members of the community have expressed concern that the boycott may result in the demise of two locally owned grocery stores. In an era when Wal-marts, other big box stores, and huge retail and restaurant chains are making it difficult for small businesses to survive, the financial viability of local stores is a matter of concern for the community.

On Dec. 5, The Olympian published a letter to the editor written by Jill Severn, who originally supported the boycott, but felt that its continuation was a threat to the financial stability of Ralph's and Bayview. In a phone interview, Severn reported that while shopping at Bayview, she asked a clerk why she could not find one of her favorite grocery items, Brown Cow yogurt. She was told that "We've lost so much money, we just can't keep this store stocked the same way."

The Bayview employee also claimed that because of the boycott, the stores had lost over 1.2 million dollars in just five months.

"I would like Olympia to be Olympia," said Severn, "not just a place like everywhere else. Those two local businesses are a piece of what makes Olympia Olympia." Severn feels that the issue of emergency contraception access will likely be resolved by the Pharmacy Board, and possibly the legislature, and boycotters should return to shopping at Ralph's.

Although the Board of Pharmacy is proceeding with the complaints filed in late July, it is a slow process. According to Lisa Salmi, acting executive director of the Washington State Board of Pharmacy, the investigation phase of the complaint process can take up to 170 days, with an extension, if needed. Six cases are still being investigated, while seven cases have been assigned to individual members of the Board of Pharmacy for review, before being presented to a panel of board members; this phase of the complaint process can take up to 140 days. Although the Pharmacy Board is delving into the issue of restricted access to emergency contraception in the Olympia area, the formal complaint process is lengthy, and it would be unrealistic to expect a quick fix from the Pharmacy Board. Likewise, local legislators are exploring the possibility of introducing legislation to ensure access to all birth control options, but this process could also take years.

Other community activists share Severn's concerns about causing financial damage to locally-owned businesses. Anna Schlecht attended the last Plan B Oly boycotting organizing meeting to share her worries that the boycott was causing a rift in the progressive community between those people who place high priority on shopping at locally-owned businesses, and those who are unwilling to patronize a store that limits women's health care choices. "It's important that we support local business," said Schlecht, "but I understand it's important to hold local community members to a standard of our community."

Anna Schlecht proposed that a discussion of this issue would be helpful. Boycott organizer and president of Thurston County National Organization for Women, Linda Malanchuk-Finnan took the lead in organizing a discussion on TCTV's Progressive Roundtable, which addressed this issue, hosted by Clint Burelson and Ryan, with guests Malanchuk-Finnan and boycott organizer Irene Lewis. The show will air on Tuesdays at 8 -- 9 pm and Wednesdays at 2 -- 3 pm throughout January.

When to stop supporting local stores

Ryan feels that the fact that Ralph's and Bayview are locally owned is, in fact, a good reason to choose to boycott. It is easier to apply pressure to a local, smaller store than to a large, corporate chain. Although Ryan believes there are good reasons to shop locally, she doesn't think that means consumers should excuse blatant breaches of community standards. "Buy local except when local dehumanizes," Ryan said. "What if they exploited their workers? Should we still support them because they're local?"

Ryan also believes that the store owners, despite being local, have chosen to enter into an issue that is being played out nationally. "Stormans is participating in a national campaign to deny women health care. The anti-choice movement has moved away from legislative and legal solutions, and toward targeting and disabling consumers, denying access to reproductive health care, rather than making those choices illegal."

It can be difficult to balance the competing values of shopping locally versus shopping at a store that does not deny women access to a full range of birth control choices. Many boycotters have shifted the bulk of their grocery shopping to the Olympia Food Co-op, which places a very strong emphasis on stocking locally grown and produced items. When asked if sales at the Co-op had grown since the boycott began, staff collective member Grace Cox reported that "the growth rate at our east side store has been relatively steady throughout the year." Judging from how hard it is to find a parking spot at the Eastside Co-op these days, it would seem that the growth rate has been substantial.

Other consumers have begun shopping at Top Foods, rather than Ralph's or Bayview. Among shoppers making this switch is the Governor's Mansion; the Olympian recently reported that the staff at the mansion, with the governor's knowledge, had shifted its grocery account from Bayview to Top Foods. Holly Armstrong, spokesperson for Christine Gregoire, when asked about whether this switch from Bayview to Top Foods signified support for the boycott, replied that the governor "was recently in the middle of dealing with the Board of Pharmacy on this issue, and then all of a sudden someone she does a lot of business with put himself right in the middle of the controversy. That weighed significantly in her decision regarding the switch." However, Armstrong added that other factors were involved. "The mansion staff is spending less at Top Foods, which is also a Washington company."

Status of Stormans

A lot of rumors are circulating about how severely the boycott is impacting Ralph's and Bayview financially. Many of these rumors are difficult to verify. Boycott organizers were surprised (although not displeased) to hear the figure of $1.2 million in lost sales mentioned. Based on the pledge cards collected in July and pledges made online at the Plan B Oly website, sales losses of $300,000 in five months would have been more in line with expectations. Of course, many people are boycotting without having made a pledge to boycott. Despite repeated attempts to speak with Kevin Stormans, vice-president of Stormans Inc., he could not be reached to confirm or deny this rumor.

Some people have remarked that the quality of the merchandise at Ralph's and Bayview has deteriorated as the boycott continues and that items past their pull dates are still on the shelves. Another rumor is that the store is unable to stock some items because of credit problems with their suppliers. In addition, it is rumored that employees have been fired or lost hours because of the boycott. An investigation into these issues has proven these rumors to be exaggerated.

Works in Progress enlisted two "mystery shoppers," women who support the boycott, to walk through the stores to see if the quality of merchandise seemed compromised, and to check on pull dates. Both undercover boycotters found these rumors to be unsubstantiated by the evidence. One mystery shopper, Jenny Jenkins, chatted up a few store employees while cruising around Bayview, checking pull dates. One employee told her that a few people had been laid off due to the boycott. However, Teresa Iverson, President of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 367, the union which represents the retail employees at Ralph's and Bayview, reported on Dec. 7 that although there has been some normal personnel turnover at the stores in the last six months, there have been no layoffs related to the boycott, and "we are still being told by our members that no one has lost hours." In fact, within the last month, both Ralph's and Bayview have been advertising that the stores are hiring.

Verifying rumors about problems with suppliers proved difficult, as businesses that sell their products at Ralph's and Bayview are understandably reluctant to speak on the record. Nevertheless, two suppliers reported that business had dropped off somewhat since the boycott began. One local business owner who sells products in Ralph's and Bayview remarked that "we haven't had our sales decimated, but we have noticed a little drop since the boycott began." He did, however, caution that the drop might be due to other factors as well, such as more people shopping at the Farmer's Market. Another local supplier, who also wishes to remain unnamed, stated that they "have noticed a drop in the amount sold -- not huge, but definite." Two other local suppliers, however, said they had not noticed any substantial change in volume. No suppliers reported credit problems with Stormans, Inc., although some suppliers were unwilling to discuss this issue.

Another indication that Stormans is feeling financial pressure because of the boycott is a drop in the amount it has paid to organizations which distribute Stormans community rebate cards to their members. Two local organizations have reported that their last quarterly rebates were "definitely down," with one being approximately half the usual amount, suggesting that many members of these organizations are boycotting. Three other organizations reported that their rebates are typically so small that it was impossible to gauge whether there had been a drop. It must be noted that most of these organizations have a liberal bent. The community rebates for other less progressive organizations may not have changed substantially.

Stormans Inc. recently opened a café in the state office building in Tumwater that houses the state Department of Corrections and the state Department of Transportation; this business expansion suggests that the corporation is not on the verge of financial collapse. It seems unlikely that the closure of Ralph's or Bayview is imminent, as some people have suggested. Again, it would have been nice to pose this question to Kevin Stormans, but he did not make himself available for comment.

Further goals for the boycott

The aim of boycott organizers has been to pressure Stormans Inc. to change its policy about stocking emergency contraception, not to put them out of business. Many boycotters miss shopping at Ralph's and Bayview and are eager to return when Ralph's Plan B policy is changed. As Jenkins said after mystery shopping at Bayview, "It made me wistful, because I really like shopping at Bayview." When asked why she continued to boycott, Jenkins replied, "I feel really strongly that we have a right to our own bodies and to safe medications for reproductive health. I think Plan B is a great thing when it's used correctly, and it makes me so angry that Ralph's won't carry it. I feel really stubborn about the boycott, because I don't want them to win."

If shoppers resolve to continue boycotting, it is very likely that the consumers will win. In retail industries, consumers have a lot of power, and historically, boycotts have brought about important social changes. Some boycotts have an immediate impact: Greenpeace's 1995 campaign against Shell Oil for planning to dump oil from the defunct Brent Spar oil rig directly into the ocean forced Shell to adopt a more environmentally sound plan in just a few days. Other boycotts have taken much longer to succeed, but eventually accomplished worthy goals. For instance, PETA's campaign against animal testing eventually forced L'Oreal and Gillette to adopt more humane practices, but it took over five years. Without actually being targeted for boycott, a number of other cosmetic companies saw how strongly the public felt about this issue, and voluntarily adopted policies that precluded cruelty to animals.

Organizers hope the Olympia boycott against Ralph's and Bayview is resolved soon, but sometimes effecting social justice takes a long-term commitment. Perhaps the rumors about the extent of the boycott's damage have been exaggerated as a ploy to gain sympathy for the stores, to scare boycotting shoppers into returning, fearing that Bayview and Ralph's might be forced to close. It does not appear that Stormans Inc. is suffering unsustainable financial damage. Still, it is evident that the boycott has had an impact, just as it is evident that the boycott's display of consumer power is being noticed by policy-makers. As Sarah Ryan put it, "Some call it damage, some call it pressure. "Let's keep the pressure on.

For more information, write planboly@hotmail.com or check out the website at http://www.planboly.org .