United Food & Commercial Workers, Local #919 (UFCW)

United Food & Commercial Workers, Local #919 (UFCW)

United Food & Commercial Workers Local 919 is a Connecticut-based labor union whose pension fund operates from Farmington. The local represents approximately 20,000 members across the state, with its densest membership at Stop & Shop Supermarket Company—its largest employer partner and the anchor of its collective bargaining power. The pension fund serves the retirement liabilities of grocery workers, meat cutters, and retail staff, placing it squarely within the Taft-Hartley multi-employer pension system. The fund's investment strategy is defined by a near-exclusive focus on buyouts. Unlike Taft-Hartley peers that allocate across public equities, fixed income, real estate, and infrastructure, Local 919's pension deploys capital into private equity buyout funds. This concentrated approach carries higher liquidity risk than diversified union plans but aligns with the return targets required to narrow funding gaps common among multi-employer pensions. The union operates a headquarters building at 6 Hyde Road in Farmington and maintains a separate Strike Assistant Fund to support members during labor disputes. Leadership sits with President Mark Espinosa and Secretary-Treasurer Jason Dokla, who jointly oversee both union operations and pension governance. Director of Organizing Jorge Cabrera, a sitting Connecticut State Senator, adds political connectivity unusual among union pension boards. In recent years, Local 919 negotiated significant collective bargaining agreements with Stop & Shop, reinforcing the employer-contribution base that funds the pension. The structural differentiator is political adjacency through dual office-holding. Cabrera's concurrent role as state senator gives the union direct access to Hartford's legislative machinery—affecting everything from pension funding rules to labor law.