A&P to close Garden City Park Pathmark, slash jobs

The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. Inc., whose brands include Waldbaum's, Pathmark and Food Emporium grocery stores, said it is closing 25 locations in New York and four other states, a move that will slash hundreds of jobs, including some on Long Island.

The Pathmark store in Garden City Park is scheduled to close Oct. 13, according to a spokesman for Local 1500 of the United Food and Commercial Workers, which represents unionized workers.

A&P spokeswoman Lauren LaBruno said in an e-mail Monday that stores in Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania are also slated for closure. She said the company is not releasing the store list and doesn't know how many workers will be affected, but according to A&P, the closures involve locations in proximity to other company stores, those facing real estate and cost issues, and underperforming, noncore stores.

A&P president and chief executive Sam Martin said the store closings and job cuts are part of a turnaround that is "absolutely necessary to strengthen A&P's operating foundation and improve our performance going forward."

There are about 120 union positions at the Garden City Pathmark. Patrick Purcell, spokesman for UFCW Local 1500, said Monday he was not sure how many members would be affected because seniority rights allow workers with seniority to transfer to other locations.

There are 17 Pathmark stores in Nassau and Suffolk counties, according to the company's website.

The union will make sure employee rights under the federal and New York State WARN Acts - which require employers to provide notice 60 days under federal law and 90 days under state law in advance of plant closings and mass layoffs - will be upheld, which could result in workers being employed beyond Oct. 13, Purcell said. UFCW will make every effort to place laid-off workers at other supermarkets, he added.

"They [Pathmark] have a great name and great workers," Purcell said. "Those are two great things to start off with - building on the workers and loyalty with customers and loyalty of the brand name."

Officials at Waldbaum's, Food Emporium and A&P did not respond Monday to requests for comment.

With Keiko Morris

and wire reports