Protest at C&H Sugar factory turns violent after 2 people reportedly hit by drivers

A protest by warehouse workers at the C&H Sugar refinery in Crockett turned violent after two people were reportedly struck by vehicles and nine people were arrested on Tuesday. The union employees at the 120-year-old factory have been on strike for over a month after contract negotiations broke down over cut benefits. 

Contra Costa County sheriff's deputies responded to the refinery on Loring Avenue around 11 a.m. after receiving multiple reports of protesters throwing rocks at trucks and blocking workers and vehicles from entering or leaving the facility, sheriff's office spokesperson Jimmy Lee told SFGATE in an emailed statement. 

"Personnel remained on scene for approximately five hours attempting to maintain order and facilitate the safe movement of traffic," Lee said. "After continued unlawful activity and repeated efforts to gain compliance, the gathering was declared an unlawful assembly."

Deputies broadcast multiple orders for the crowd to disperse, Lee said. Nine people who remained were arrested and booked into the Martinez Detention Facility on various charges, including remaining at an unlawful assembly, battery, obstruction and resisting an officer. Six were cited and released, while three remain in custody.

The California Highway Patrol is investigating reports that two people were hit by vehicles, the sheriff's office said. SFGATE reached out to the CHP for a comment on the matter, but the agency did not respond before the time of publication. 

C&H Sugar spokesperson Marianne Martinez characterized the protest as an "illegal and dangerous blockade" that disrupted refinery operations and caused emotional distress to employees and local business owners.

"We have respected the union's right to strike, but we do not accept this dangerous and illegal behavior," the spokesperson said in an emailed statement to SFGATE.

ILWU Local 6 did not immediately respond to SFGATE's request for comment. 

The confrontation marked the latest escalation at one of the Bay Area's oldest industrial landmarks. The striking workers unload, store and prepare sugar for shipment at C&H's waterfront refinery, which has operated in Crockett since 1906 and helped give the community the nickname "Sugar Town." Last year, the company agreed to pay $500,000 to settle claims over noxious emissions from a jointly operated wastewater treatment plant after residents reported nausea-inducing "rotten egg or sulfur" odors. 

Tuesday's unrest comes more than one month into a strike that started with roughly 100 warehouse workers represented by International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 6, who walked off the job on June 15 after contract negotiations broke down. 

On June 26, Local 6 filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that C&H bargained in bad faith, prematurely declared an impasse, imposed disputed contract terms and unlawfully fired several strikers. The union said the charges are under investigation by the agency's regional office in Oakland. 

The C&H spokesperson said C&H disputes those allegations and that its contract proposal includes a 20% cumulative wage increase over five years, 56 hours of sick leave along with overtime pay after 40 hours in a week, as well as vacation, holidays and other benefits.

"Rather than respond with solutions, the ILWU simply rejected the contract while offering no ideas, proposals or path forward of its own," the spokesperson told SFGATE.

The union said C&H's proposed wage increases would be offset by cuts to overtime and retiree healthcare, including replacing time-and-a-half after eight hours with overtime only after 40 hours a week and eliminating coverage used by roughly 100 retirees and spouses.

The union accused C&H of presenting workers with a "take it or leave it" proposal and refusing to meaningfully alter it.

"They've threatened us and treated us like we don't understand basic math, like how overtime works," Local 6 chief steward Otis Brown said in a July 19 news release.

The strike has drawn support from ILWU chapters in the United States and Canada.

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla also called for both parties to reach an agreement.

"Every Californian deserves fair wages, fair benefits, and the right to collectively bargain," Padilla wrote in a July 6 post on X. "It's time to get back to the table and get this done."

The union bargaining committee returned to negotiations with C&H and a federal mediator on Monday. Talks were scheduled to resume Wednesday.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 5:30 p.m., July 22, to correct the name of the C&H spokesperson. 

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