70 Laroche Foundry workers strike; Tentative agreement reached at SAQ
Canadian Linen plant workers ratify deal
DARTMOUTH, N.S. — Unifor, Local 1015 Canadian Linen workers in Dartmouth, N.S. voted 80 per cent to ratify a four-year collective agreement on Nov. 26.
The term of the new agreement for 30 employees, who work primarily as laundry cleaning staff, is retroactive to Jan. 1, and expires on Jan. 1, 2024, says the union.
The gains include wage increases: in the first year, workers will get a 5.2-per-cent bump, retroactive from the first year, adding up to 14.2 per cent over the contract, says Unifor.
The new agreement also sees an overall increase from 2.5 per cent to four per cent in the workers’ DC pension plan with the employer matching contributions and gains in paramedical and vision care amounts, as well an increased safety boot equipment allowance, says Unifor.
“Members witnessed an undercutting of their work through increased hiring of temporary staff in recent years, but the bargaining committee made job ownership a priority,” says Paul Farrell, president Unifor, Local 1015. “We managed to address this concern by limiting the percentage of temporary staff allowed in the workplace and by requiring that union dues are paid on their behalf by the company, even though they are not union members.”
70 Laroche Foundry workers strike
LAVAL, Que. — Employees at Laroche Foundry in Laval, Que. went on strike beginning Dec. 1.
The 70 workers are represented by Teamsters, Local 1791.
Negotiations between the parties, which began last May, have not resolved the impasse, says the union.
“This company is struggling to recruit and retain its employees in a context of a labour shortage,” says François Laporte, president of Teamsters Canada.
The work contract between the parties ended last May. The members present at the union meeting took a unanimous strike vote a few weeks ago, says the union.
Tentative agreement reached at SAQ
MONTREAL — A tentative agreement was reached on Nov. 29 between the management of the Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ) and the union representing about 800 warehouse and delivery employees.
The agreement was reached one half-hour prior to the end of the truce that had resulted in the suspension of the strike on Nov. 23, says the Syndicat des travailleurs et travailleuses de la SAQ (STTSAQ), which is also represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), Local 3535.
“We wanted to give negotiations one more chance. Details of the agreement will be made public only after the members have had a chance to read it. The union will recommend that it be adopted. A general meeting should be organized sometime next week to ratify the new contract,” says Joël Latour, president of STTSAQ.
Cannabis workers at Burnside Buds join UFCW
VICTORIA — Budtenders at Burnside Buds in Victoria are the newest cannabis workers to join the United Food and Commercial Workers union (UFCW), Local 1518’s growing cannabis division, BC BUD.
Workers at Burnside Buds organized a union to improve their working conditions and establish more respect on the job, says the union.
The BC BUD division will begin commencing negotiations on issues that matter to the bargaining unit, as the union has been developing a reputation for improving wages, training, and other workplace issues in the cannabis sector, says UFCW.
