Workers at Island Pharmacy join UFCW

Job security major issue: Union

Workers at Island Pharmacy on Vancouver Island in British Columbia are the newest members of United Food and Commercial Workers Canada (UFCW) Local 1518 after voting June 9 to join the union.

Roughly 50 pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy assistants, and point of sale receivers have joined more than 21,000 British Columbians who are currently represented by UFCW 1518.

“This is a significant win for the workers at Island Pharmacy,” said Keith Murdoch, UFCW Canada national representative. “It was a long campaign with a number of hurdles to overcome. There’s one employer with nine different locations. It was a lot of work to get everyone on the same page and make an application.”

Arbitrary terminations helped start a conversation about the need for job security and protection. And the employer’s failure to pay overtime caused UFCW 1518 to file a third party complaint under the B.C. Employment Standards Act, said the union.

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