About 45,000 grocery workers have authorized a strike at Ralphs, Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions stores in Southern California to protest unfair labor practices.

The union representing more than 45,000 grocery store workers from Santa Barbara to San Diego voted Wednesday to authorize a strike against supermarket chains Albertsons and Kroger. No date has been set for a strike.

United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 announced Saturday that, unlike the February strike by King Soopers workers, the Safeway/Albertsons walkout will begin on a more limited scale.