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Kellogg’s Stock Could Be Hurt By Pending Lawsuits & Strikes – Should You Sell?

Juanmonino / Getty Images
Juanmonino / Getty Images

Kellogg Co. stock dipped by nearly a dollar yesterday (0.63%) as strikes and lawsuits plague the breakfast cereal and packaged foods manufacturer. The stock price has fallen for six of the last 10 days, with a net loss of 1.64% over that time.

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Striking Kellogg employees have entered week four on the picket lines, and many are starting to feel the cash crunch from the loss of income. Nonetheless, workers are hopeful that negotiations could resume shortly.

The Kellogg Company reached out to Union leaders yesterday requesting to resume negotiations on the strike that has been going on since early October. Union leaders, as of yet, have not responded, according to news reports.

“As we have stated from the beginning, the Company is willing to consider any proposals from the Union including proposals that would preserve a pathway for transitionals to legacy wages and benefits. At the end of the day, we have a responsibility to these employees – which is to engage in good faith bargaining toward a replacement agreement that gets them back to work,” a Kellogg spokesperson said in an email to Union leaders.

Kellogg Company employees told Forbes that the strike is about the company’s plans to reduce hourly wages, and cut benefits, pension, retirement and healthcare for their lower-wage employees. Dan Osborn, Local 50G Union president and Kellogg employee, told Forbes, “Thirty percent of employees are on a lower tier, making eleven, twelve dollars an hour less (than higher tier employees), higher insurance premiums, less vacation, lower vacation pay.”

He added that the company is fighting for equalization of wages, not increases or better benefits.

Meanwhile, a woman in New York is suing Kellogg Company because the filling in the frosted strawberry flavor of Pop-tarts breakfast pastries use “less strawberries than expected,” and “contains more pears and apples than strawberries,” according to a news report from WSLS News.

The complainant is asking for more than $5 million in damages and the case will be heard by a jury. The same lawyers representing the New York woman are also representing a woman in Illinois with a similar complaint. The Kellogg Company has not commented on either lawsuit, according to the news report.

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As the Kellogg Company stock price dips, you may be wondering if this is a good time to buy into the iconic cereal manufacturer, now in its 115th year of operation. Experts say no, and, in fact, if you’re holding any Kellogg stock, you may want to sell now before further losses, according to StockInvest.us.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Kellogg’s Stock Could Be Hurt By Pending Lawsuits & Strikes – Should You Sell?