Sexual health centre workers join CUPE; Foodora couriers join union
Co-op workers ratify agreement
REGINA — Unifor, Local 594 members ratified a tentative agreement on June 22 with Co-op Refinery in Regina, ending a six-month lockout of 730 workers by Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL).
“We didn’t seek this work stoppage. Now that it’s finally been resolved, our members are looking forward to returning to their jobs and getting back to work,” says Kevin Bittman, Unifor, Local 594 president. “This was the first, and hopefully last, work stoppage in our local’s 78 years of faithfully providing the Co-op refinery with our dedicated labour.”
The new collective agreement maintains the DB pension plan and the company matched employee savings plan for existing workers. Wage improvements in the new collective agreement match the national pattern, says the union.
Sexual health centre workers join CUPE
OTTAWA — The Ontario Labour Relations Board confirmed that workers at Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights (Action Canada) in Ottawa voted overwhelmingly to join the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
The workers voted on May 5, but the ballots could not be counted until June 18 because of objections raised by the employer, which have largely been resolved, says the union.
“We’re thrilled to welcome these workers who want to work together to improve their workplace and contribute to the future of Action Canada and its progressive goals,” says Kristy Davidson, a CUPE representative who helped organize the workplace.
Action Canada is a pro-choice, charitable organization committed to advancing and upholding sexual and reproductive health and rights in Canada and around the world.
“Labour rights are a reproductive justice and feminist issue. We are excited to join CUPE and look forward to bargaining a collective agreement that reflects the values central to sexual and reproductive rights,” says Darrah Teitel, a member of this new CUPE bargaining unit.
Foodora couriers join union
TORONTO — Foodora couriers and drivers in Toronto and Mississauga voted in favour of unionization with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) on June 16, becoming the first app-based workforce in Canada to do so.
“The truth is free — we are a union and we deserve respect and rights from our employer,” says Iván Ostos, a courier who has worked on the unionization campaign from the very beginning. “Through conversations, companionship, and the dedication of hard-working foodsters, we came together to achieve something many said was impossible.”
While Foodora announced in April the shutdown of its Canadian operations, leaving thousands of gig workers without employment during a global pandemic, the results of this vote remain historic, says the union.
Nine months after the union certification vote, the Ontario Labour Relations Board (OLRB) finally unsealed and counted the ballots. This was only made possible after the board ruled in February that the couriers and drivers were dependent contractors and not independent contractors, and therefore eligible to unionize, says CUPW.
The outcome is the culmination of a long unionization campaign by riders and drivers fighting for respect as workers, better health and safety protections and fair compensation for the work they perform, says the union.
“People said gig workers can’t be organized, but these workers just proved that you can,” says Jan Simpson, CUPW national president.
