Joe Jarmie is a meat cutter at the North Haven, Connecticut Stop & Shop, and Kristen Johnson works as a deli manager at the Stop & Shop in Somerville, Massachusetts. They are among the 31,000 Stop & Shop workers in 240 stores across New England who went on strike for eleven days this month.

The company and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) reached a tentative agreement Sunday. The union said the new potential contract addresses workers’ concerns over health care, retirement plans, and wages. Employees returned to work today, although the five locals have yet to vote on whether to accept the proposal.

Faced with potential hikes in health insurance costs, the workers saw a harsh reality. Johnson worried about workers who already skip the doctor because it’s too expensive, Jarmie about spouses who could get kicked off of workers’ insurance plans.