The two sides now have until at least Sept. 21 to negotiate a new contract.

United Food & Commercial Workers Local 23 and the Kroger Co. have agreed to a four-week contract extension, giving them at least until Sept. 21 to negotiate a new agreement.

The extension, which could be extended on a day-to-day basis after Sept. 21, was arranged after errors that would have underfunded health care benefits were discovered in the company's contract offer. The delay will allow the company to present corrected proposals when negotiations resume in Dayton.

“I’m relieved we have an extension to give us more time because we are certainly hopeful that once these errors are fixed an agreement can be reached,” Local 23 bargaining committee member Alesia Brogdon said.

The union's current extension was slated to expire Sunday.

Earlier in the month workers soundly rejected a proposal calling for lump sum bonuses in lieu of hourly wage increases, as well as higher health care deductibles and co-pays. Union leaders had said the lump sum bonus would have amounted to just a fraction of a cent per hour worked for most employees and, in addition to being taxed at a higher rate, they said any gain realized by a lump sum payment would be eroded by higher employee health care costs.

Workers rejected that offer by a 99 percent margin and, if no agreement was reached, authorized a strike by a 97 percent margin.

But both sides have cautioned that a strike authorization doesn’t necessarily mean workers will, in fact, walk off the job.

Members of the union's bargaining committee have said workers are looking for an agreement “that doesn’t undercut workers.”

Company officials have said they believe an agreement can be reached “that is good for our associates and for our company too, so we can be competitive.”