As reported in ADN recently in an Associated Press article, a hearing is now underway that will determine the fate of the proposed merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons. The Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, and nine states, along with the District of Columbia, have sued to block the merger.

Alaska’s congressional delegation and several Alaska lawmakers oppose the deal, which would result in the closure of 18 Carrs grocery stores owned by Albertsons. Those stores are located in Anchorage, Eagle River, Palmer, Wasilla, Girdwood, Kenai Peninsula, Fairbanks, North Pole and Juneau.

If approved, the $24.6 billion deal would ultimately result in the closure of 579 stores across the U.S. Together, the two companies employ about 710,000 people.

In recent hearing testimony, Kroger and Albertson attorneys claim the merger would strengthen their ability to compete with Walmart, Amazon and Costco, noting the merger would actually result in lower food prices.

Albertson-owned Carrs employees are represented by unions and employees at Kroger-owned stores — Fred Meyer — are not. The average salaries of Carrs workers are slightly higher. If the merger is approved by the FTC, will the remaining stores in Alaska be unionized? I seriously doubt it.

If Kroger and Albertsons are having difficulty competing in the grocery business world, it doesn’t seem as if executive salaries are suffering. The annual compensation packages of both Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen and Albertson CEO Vivek Sankaran are north of $15 million. Executives in those companies earn roughly $400,000 per year and higher.

According to Zippia , an online career website, the average annual salary of a Kroger (Fred Meyer) grocery store worker in Alaska is about $34,800 per year and, at Albertsons (Carrs), about $35,700.

In the 1987 movie “Wall Street,” the character Gordon Gekko, played by actor Michael Douglas, told investors “greed ... is good,” touting it as a strong business motivator. The proposed merger strikes me as a profiteering move that will only benefit those at the literal “top of the food chain.” It’s a story that’s been repeated across America many times.

I do hope that Alaska’s government leadership will have the wherewithal to see this merger for what it is and join efforts by the FTC as well as Lower 48 states to block the deal. Fewer stores in Alaska will mean less competition. Less competition will not reduce food prices. Less competition will not ensure higher food quality. Less competition will not benefit store workers’ compensation nor their working conditions.

Frank E. Baker is a lifetime Alaskan and freelance writer who lives in Eagle River.

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