HALIFAX— Unifor is disappointed by Northern Pulp parent company Paper Excellence’s decision not to make a special pension payment for its workers in today’s British Columbia Supreme Court filing.
TILLSONBURG, ONTARIO—Approximately 160 Unifor Local 1859 members at auto parts manufacturer THK Rhythm Automotive ratified a collective agreement today, ending a three-day strike at the plant.
MONCTON-Unifor members at Acadia Toyota in Moncton, N.B., ratified an agreement today with their employer, ending a five-day strike.
“We are pleased to see a deal reached that responded to the workers’ demands for increased pay and improvements to personal days,” said Linda MacNeil, Unifor Atlantic Regional Director. “There is power in withholding our labour and in standing together to fight for what’s right. Thank you to every Unifor member and retiree who visited the picket line or sent messages to offer their support and solidarity.”
As part of ongoing efforts to bargain better outcomes for patient care and hospital staff, health care unions launch television ads aimed at the OHA
TORONTO, ON – Three unions negotiating with the Ontario Hospital Association (OHA) to resolve the ongoing hospital staffing crisis, job safety concerns and pandemic-related mental health supports, today launched a province-wide television advertising blitz to fix the mess and save hospital care in Ontario.
TORONTO–– Unifor members at Metro Distribution Centre warehouses have negotiated significant wage gains in a new collective agreement, ending a seven-day strike action.
“This collective agreement achieves the best maximum pay rate and fastest progression in the industry. There is no doubt that it will raise the bar for warehouse workers across Ontario,” said Unifor Ontario Regional Director Naureen Rizvi. “Unifor has negotiated an inflation beating increase of more than 8% on average in the first year in addition to pension and benefit wins.”
MONCTON—Three Unifor members from Local 4501 were struck by a vehicle while on a picket line in front of Acadia Toyota in Moncton, N.B.
“Our members have the right to picket for fair wages without experiencing violence,” says Linda MacNeil, Unifor Atlantic Regional Director. “Thankfully, the members only sustained bumps and bruises, but this could have ended in a tragic situation.”
OTTAWA – Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, says Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland tightened the belt on workers in this year’s federal budget.
“Unifor is pleased there was some continued effort to improve the lives of workers in Canada by investing in programs that move the country towards a fair, inclusive and resilient economy,” said Lana Payne, Unifor National Secretary-Treasurer. “But the goalposts and investments fall far short of what we need after two turbulent years of a pandemic.”
TORONTO–Striking Metro Distribution Centre workers will vote Friday April 8, 2022 on a tentative agreement reached between Unifor Local 414 and the company.
The more than 900 full-time workers at four distribution centre locations in Toronto’s west end began strike action on April 2 after voting to turn down a prior agreement.
The warehouse distribution centre locations in Etobicoke supply Metro and Food Basics grocery stores across southern Ontario along the Kingston – Windsor corridor.
VICTORIA—Workers in B.C. will have fewer barriers to unionization, thanks to new legislation introduced by the Horgan government today.
“Precarious part-time and temporary work is on the rise. These are the workers that deserve more access to the power of a union,” said Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor Western Regional Director. “This government was elected to help create good jobs and protect vulnerable British Columbians. Returning to single-step unionization does both.”
WINNIPEG—Nearly 300 Unifor activists from across the Prairies will march to Union Station demanding the federal government reverse its plan to privatize the VIA Rail Windsor to Quebec City corridor.
LONDON – Health care workers at Meadow Park long-term care facility will hold a rally demanding the employer to get back to the bargaining table and start to respect, protect and pay health care workers.
Who: Lisa Tucker, Local 302 President
Andy Savela, Unifor Health Care Director
When: 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Wednesday, April 6, 2022
Where: Meadow Park London Long Term Care, 1210 Southdale Rd E, London
OSHAWA—Unifor welcomes today’s announcement that federal and provincial investments for General Motors have been finalized and will help secure a third shift at the Oshawa plant and Canada’s first full assembly line retool to build electric commercial vehicles in Ingersoll.
“This is a proud moment for Unifor members at General Motors,” said Shane Wark Unifor Assistant to the National President. “Today’s funding announcement was years in the making and shows how much we can accomplish when autoworkers, automakers, and governments work together.”
TORONTO––More than 900 full-time workers at Metro’s Etobicoke warehouse distribution centre began strike action today after voting to reject a tentative agreement with the company.
“The members have final say on the tentative agreement and have opted to turn down this offer,” said Chris MacDonald, Unifor Assistant to the National President. “The bargaining committee is ready to resume negotiations in the hope of bringing this strike to a speedy end.”
TORONTO–– Unifor Local 414 and Metro have reached a tentative collective agreement covering more than 900 full-time workers at the Etobicoke warehouse distribution centre, avoiding strike action.
“I congratulate the bargaining committee for their work in raising the standard for these workers, who are vital part of the supply chain,” said Unifor Ontario Regional Director Naureen Rizvi. “Grocery giants have done very well during the pandemic and it’s only fair that the frontline workers should share in that success.”
BELLEVILLE—The bargaining committee for Unifor Local 1839 signed a tentative agreement with Belleville Transit before the midnight deadline avoiding strike action.
“Front line transit workers in Belleville have reached a fair settlement that respects the hard work and vital services they provide to the community,” said Chris Macdonald, Assistant to the Unifor National President. “My congratulations to the bargaining committee for their hard work.”
MONCTON-Seasonal tire changes and other vehicle maintenance may be hard to schedule in the coming weeks if Moncton-area dealerships refuse to negotiate a fair deal with servicing staff.
“Servicing staff are what keep dealerships running, day in and day out,” says Linda MacNeil, Unifor Atlantic Regional Director. “What we’re seeing at two Moncton-area dealerships are employers who are digging in their heels and not responding to their service staff’s fair demands for better wages and working conditions.”
TORONTO–Workers at the Metro distribution warehouse in Etobicoke, Ontario are approaching a strike deadline of 12:01 April 1, 2022.
“Metro has profited tremendously during the pandemic but it is the shareholders who have benefited, not the front line workers,” said Unifor Ontario Regional Director Naureen Rizvi.
TORONTO-The Ontario government’s announcement that it has finally joined every other province and territory across Canada in signing the federal child care plan marks a long-overdue turning point for Canadian families.
WHISTLER—By removing its latest offer from the bargaining table and suggesting binding arbitration, the employer in the seven-week long Sea to Sky transit dispute has ensured that the parties are farther from reaching a conclusion, not closer.
“PW Transit squandered weeks of progress with their stunt today,” said Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor Western Regional Director. “The employer’s stubbornness on fair wages has set negotiations back weeks, if not months.”
MONTREAL— Close to 200 Unifor delegates kicked off bargaining preparations for the pattern agreement in the pulp and paper industry in Eastern Canada by selecting Resolute Forestry Products as the target company. Members at the Pulp and Paper Wage Policy Conference, held in Montreal on March 23 and 24, 2022, worked together to build a list of demands and choose the target employer.
TORONTO– The Unifor National Executive Board has determined that former National President Jerry Dias stands charged with breaching Article 4, Code of Ethics and Democratic Practices, of the Unifor Constitution after an independent external investigator determined that on the balance of pr
WINNIPEG—An independent arbitrator has sided with Unifor in a key battle against the Manitoba government over layoffs proposed in 2020.
“The PC government wants Crown corporations and public services to fail. It’s the pretext for privatization,” said Gavin McGarrigle, Unifor Western Regional Director. “Unifor fought to keep Manitoba Hydro staffed properly.”
BELLEVILLE—Mayor Mitch Panciuk used his YouTube channel to deliver deceptive comments about the city’s bargaining with transit workers represented by Local 1839, says Unifor.
“Either the mayor is out of the loop or he is misleading his constituents about the state of play in transit bargaining,” said Chris Macdonald, Unifor Assistant to the National President. “His comments are inaccurate and will only damage the already tense negotiations created by his human resources team.”
TORONTO – The elected leadership of Unifor will provide an update on the complaint filed that former Unifor National President Jerry Dias breached the Unifor Constitution. The update will be broadcast on the union’s Facebook pages facebook.com/UniforCanada (English) and facebook.com/UniforQuebec (French) on March 23, 2022 at 1:00 p.m. ET.
OTTAWA- The Liberal and NDP tentative confidence-and-supply agreement, including a commitment to introduce federal anti-scab legislation, is a good move for Canada’s workers, says Unifor.
WHISTLER—Negotiations in the Sea to Sky region transit dispute came to a halt this evening after the employer refused to agree to any plans for eventual wage parity with Metro Vancouver transit operators.
Unifor Western Regional Director Gavin McGarrigle and senior staff joined the talks today to end the 48-day transit strike covering Squamish, Whistler, and Pemberton.
“Progress was made but there must be a roadmap to wage parity,” said McGarrigle, referring to the massive gap between the corridor’s transit workers and those in Metro Vancouver.
BELLEVILLE—After concessions were tabled during contract negotiations, Unifor Local 1839 members have voted 100% in favour of taking strike action if bargaining doesn’t produce a tentative agreement by April 1, 2022.
“Seeking concessions from front-line workers is shameful,” said Lana Payne, Unifor National Secretary-Treasurer. “Transit workers have earned a fair contract and we will accept nothing less.”
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