Published: June 15, 2008 10:47 pm      

U.S. 31 Salin branch closing

UFCW, Kroger reach tentative agreement

When Kroger announced it was closing its Reed Road store, Salin Bank & Trust Co. suddenly found itself with a branch that had nowhere else to go.

“It was a very sudden notice for us,” said Rita Ewers, Salin’s corporate marketing director. “We have to move forward with closure.”

Salin customers may visit its other Kokomo locations — 112 S. Washington St. and Kroger at Northwest Plaza — or branches in Galveston and Burlington.

“We still have two locations in Kokomo and one nearby in Galveston,” Ewers said. “We have the technology to take care of clients through the Internet and telephone banking.”

Employees at the Reed Road branch may apply for any open position within Salin.

“We have opportunities available throughout the organization and they will be given consideration for that,” Ewers explained.

In other news involving Kroger, United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 700 reached a tentative agreement with the company on a new contract Wednesday.

UFCW 700, headquartered in Indianapolis, represents 4,200 Kroger employees, including 264 in Kokomo, at 60 stores throughout Indiana.

The union is presenting details of the agreement to its members prior to a possible vote.

Details of the agreement will not be released until it is ratified.