Safeway California Layoffs 2026: What Employees Should Know

What the filing says

These are the details as Safewayreported them to the state. The EDD publishes every notice, and these figures come from the state's report as retrieved on Aug 13, 2026.

How much notice the law requires

California's WARN Act requires 60 days of advance written notice before a covered mass layoff, and its only statutory exception is a physical calamity or an act of war — far narrower than federal law's three. Who is covered and how the thresholds are counted is in our California WARN Act guide.

Safeway severance: what to check before you sign

A severance offer is not the notice pay the WARN Act describes. Severance you were already promised — in a contract, a handbook, or a union agreement — cannot be used to satisfy that obligation, though Labor Code section 1402 does let an employer reduce a back-pay award by voluntary payments it was never required to make. A release may also give up more than you expect. Justin reviews severance agreements before workers sign. What to check before you decide is in our full guide to the California WARN Act.

Two things worth doing this week either way. File for unemployment now — WARN money does not reduce it, and the filings here run through Feb 2, 2026, so you do not have to wait for your last day. And keep every document, including the notice itself and anything showing when it arrived.

Questions people are asking

Where a layoff can raise a legal question

A layoff is lawful on its own, and nothing below is a statement about Safeway. These are the places California law can still come into play, depending on the facts of your own situation.

• The severance you were asked to signA release can give up claims you did not know you had, and the terms are sometimes negotiable.
• How you were selectedA reduction in force still cannot be used to cut someone for a protected reason such as age, disability, pregnancy, or a complaint they made.
• Your final paycheckCalifornia sets when final wages are due at termination, and unpaid time or accrued vacation can carry penalties on top of the wages.

General information about California law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.

What has been reported

Press coverage of this layoff, summarized and attributed. This is reporting rather than the filing itself, and we did not independently verify it.

KRON4 reported that Safeway is permanently closing its store at 231 Jackson St. in Hayward's Jackson Triangle neighborhood in late February 2026. "We have been proud to serve the Jackson Triangle neighborhood over the years, and this decision was not made lightly," the company said. "With our lease term ending, we have carefully considered our options and decided to shift our strategy."

NBC Bay Area reported that the Safeway at 22280 Foothill Blvd. will remain open as the only other Safeway in Hayward, and the company said it offers the same offerings as the Jackson Street location plus a Starbucks kiosk and pharmacy.

Sources: KRON4 (opens in a new tab) · NBC Bay Area (opens in a new tab)

What the numbers show

• The 76 affected positions are in Hayward.
• The notice is filed as a closure rather than a partial reduction, meaning the site itself is shutting down.
• The shortest gap between notice and last day is 89 days, longer than the 61-day statewide median.
• The 76 workers leaving Safeway re-enter a job market where Alameda County unemployment stood at 4.4% in June 2026, below the 5.2% statewide rate (Bureau of Labor Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).

These are counts and comparisons drawn from the published filings, not findings about Safeway.

Free job-search help near Hayward

America's Job Center of California is the state's no-cost network for laid-off workers: help filing and keeping unemployment benefits, federally funded retraining, and résumé and interview coaching. Your WARN notice may name one; this is the closest to the site in this filing.

• Eden Area AJCC (opens in a new tab)

  24100 Amador Street, Hayward, CA 94544 · 510-670-5700; for resources and services

  Comprehensive center (full services on site) · about 0.5 miles from the Hayward site

Locations and hours change — confirm before visiting, or find another center with the EDD's center locator (opens in a new tab). Directory: U.S. Department of Labor, Jul 31, 2026; distances are straight-line from the address in the filing.

Other layoffs filed in Alameda County around the same time

56 employers have WARN notices on file in Alameda County, covering 4,620 workers. These filed within about a quarter of this one.

• Meta Platforms, Inc.4,150 workers
• Walmart587 workers
• Alameda Health System240 workers
• Web To Door Corporation192 workers
• Exelixis, Inc.145 workers
• AbbVie144 workers

Listed because they appear in the same county in the same public data. No connection between these employers is implied.

California wage claims filed against Safeway

California employers face claims under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), which lets an employee sue for civil penalties over Labor Code violations on behalf of the state. The state publishes every filing. 14 PAGA cases naming this employer are on that record, including the settlements below.

These are outcomes in other people’s cases, obtained by other lawyers, taken from the state’s public filing record. They are not results of this firm, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. What any individual recovers depends on their own hours, pay records, and dates.

• Court-approved settlement · 2019

  $12,000,000

  Food clerk checkers who worked front-end check stands at Safeway stores in Northern California alleged that Safeway violated wage order seating requirements. The court granted final approval of a PAGA-only settlement, finding it fair and adequate. The settlement provides monetary relief to the aggrieved employees and the state, but Safeway does not admit any wrongdoing.

  Covered Safeway food clerk checkers who worked in a front-end check stand in a Safeway Northern California store between April 19, 2010 through March 8, 2019. The settlement resolved PAGA civil penalties only.

  Employees covered

  30,182

  Attorneys' fees

  $4,200,000

  To the state (LWDA)

  $5,626,875

  Superior Court of the State of California, in and for the County of Santa Clara · Safeway denied liability; a settlement is not an admission.

• Court-approved settlement · 2024

  $4,975,000

  A group of current and former non-exempt employees of Safeway Inc. sued for alleged wage and hour violations. The court granted final approval of a class action settlement. The settlement resolves the claims without admission of liability. One class member objected, but the court found the settlement fair and reasonable.

  Covered the Class, as conditionally certified by the Preliminary Approval Order. The settlement resolved class claims as well as PAGA penalties.

  Employees covered

  107,503

  Attorneys' fees

  $1,492,500

  To the state (LWDA)

  $56,250

  Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Alameda · RG18913668 · Safeway denied liability; a settlement is not an admission.

• Proposed settlement · 2025

  $2,800,000

  Current and former retail store managers and supervisors for Safeway and Vons in California alleged they were not reimbursed for work-related business expenses. The parties reached a proposed settlement to resolve these claims and related PAGA penalties without admitting liability. The settlement provides payments to affected employees and allocates a portion to the state labor agency.

  Covered all individuals who are or were employed by Safeway in a Safeway Class Position at any time during the Safeway Class Period and all individuals who are or were employed by Vons in a Vons Class Position at any time during the Vons Class Period. The settlement resolved class claims as well as PAGA penalties.

  To the state (LWDA)

  $75,000

  Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Alameda · RG20075295 · Safeway denied liability; a settlement is not an admission.

5 further settlements are on the record for this employer.

A PAGA case is not a class action, and there is nothing to opt out of. A PAGA settlement resolves civil penalties owed to the state — most of which the state keeps — and it does not necessarily resolve your own unpaid wages, missed break premiums, or final-paycheck penalties. If you worked here and were not paid correctly, that is a separate question worth asking about. How California wage claims work.