Apr 11, 2022
Metro workers reach new deal while strike at Sobeys distribution centre continues
, The Canadian Press
Workers at a Metro distribution centre in Ontario have voted in favour of a new deal while workers at a Sobeys warehouse in Quebec have rejected the grocer's latest offer.
More than 900 workers at Metro Inc.'s Toronto-area distribution centre ratified a new four-and-a-half-year collective agreement Friday, ending a one-week strike.
Unifor said Metro warehouse workers in Etobicoke will receive an average wage increase of 15.8 per cent over the lifetime of the new deal.
The union said the new collective agreement also includes higher shift premiums for freezer work, a shortened wage progression to reach the top rate, improvements to pensions and benefits and no concessions.
"This collective agreement achieves the best maximum pay rate and fastest progression in the industry," Unifor Ontario regional director Naureen Rizvi said in a statement.
"There is no doubt that it will raise the bar for warehouse workers across Ontario."
Carmen Fortino, executive vice-president and division head for Metro in Ontario, said in a statement the company and the union reached a "fair and reasonable" deal that maintains competitive working conditions for employees.
Meanwhile, 190 workers at a Sobeys distribution centre in Terrebonne, Que., remain on strike after turning down the grocer's latest offer.
Kim Bergeron, a lawyer representing UFCW Canada’s Local 501, said workers rejected a tentative agreement Friday with 69 per cent voting against a proposed new deal.
Pay and benefits remain the key sticking point, she said.
Sobeys spokeswoman Claudine Leblanc said the company was "surprised and disappointed" that workers rejected the tentative agreement recommended by the bargaining committee.
"Our teammates in Terrebonne have one of the most comprehensive and competitive agreements in Quebec," she said.
Workers are currently paid wages of up to $30 an hour, and the proposed deal included salary increases on top of the that, Leblanc said in an email.
"We will continue to negotiate with the union representatives so we can reach a deal very soon," she said.
Sobeys has contingency plans in place to ensure customers continue to receive the same service and products at IGA stores across the province, Leblanc added.
