Share
TORONTO— Unifor demands that Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) put workers ahead of other creditors as it moves to liquidate assets and restructure under creditor protection.
“Workers showed up, gave their time, and kept this company running for years. They must be paid every dollar they are owed—no exceptions, no excuses,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “Workers cannot be abandoned while creditors and executives walk away with their share. Workers must come first.”
Many Unifor members at HBC have dedicated more than 15 years of service, weathering industry changes, economic downturns, and a tumultuous corporate leadership.
“This process is filled with uncertainty and precarity—an impossible situation to put workers in,” said Payne. “It’s a terrible way for our members to get some answers—or worse, no answers at all. This is a devastating loss for Canadian retail.”
HBC has indicated it could potentially maintain six stores, excluding them from liquidation, but this plan is not assured and depends on securing additional financing. At present, 87 stores and distribution centres are set to close, which will result in job loss for the majority of employees.
Unifor’s unionized stores are not among the six HBC identified for potential retention, meaning they are subject to liquidation unless future restructuring plans change. Unifor is calling on HBC to honour severance agreements, pay outstanding wages, and ensure pension and benefit commitments are met in full.
The union has successfully advocated for enhanced efforts to protect Canadian workers facing bankruptcies or restructuring, including pension protections and the Wage Earner Protection Program (WEPP), which compensates workers for unpaid wages when employers go bankrupt. Unifor has long called for additional measures, such as increasing WEPP payouts, expanding protections to more sectors, and strengthening employer liability, to further safeguard workers impacted by insolvency.
The union’s collective agreements with HBC include protections for workers in addition to federal supports, including enhanced severance and pension benefits.
“The federal government’s failure to strengthen worker protections in insolvency cases is leaving thousands of workers vulnerable—yet again. HBC’s creditor protection application highlights the urgent need to increase supports to workers impacted by corporate restructuring and bankruptcy. Without these critical reforms, workers will continue to bear the brunt of corporate mismanagement while executives walk away unscathed. It’s time for the government to stop prioritizing corporations over the livelihoods of working people,” added Payne.
Unifor Locals 40 and 240 represent approximately 595 HBC employees at stores in Windsor, Kitchener, and Toronto’s Sherway Gardens, as well as workers at the company’s e-commerce warehouse.
Unifor is Canada’s largest union in the private sector, representing 320,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad, and strives to create progressive change for a better future.
For media inquiries please contact Unifor Communications Representative Paul Whyte at @email or by cell at (416) 549-6546.
