DETROIT – Kroger announced Wednesday that more than 17,000 grocery workers in Michigan will receive a pay raise and improved benefits. RELATED: Kroger announces ‘hero bonus’ for hourly frontline associatesThe announcement affects more than 460,000 workers at Kroger stores nationwide, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union announced. UFCW officials said this was an essential investment in grocery workers on the front lines of the coronavirus outbreak. “Following talks between UFCW, America’s largest food and retail union, and Kroger, UFCW is proud to join the company today in announcing a $2 per hour wage increase, additional emergency paid leave, new workplace safety measures, and other critical worker protections,” UFCW International President Marc Perrone said. “The Hero Bonus is just one more way we continue to convey our thanks and gratitude not only to our existing associates but also to the more than 30,000 new hires who have joined in the past two weeks and those who will soon join the Kroger Family of Companies.”