WINDSOR, Ont. -- The union representing Freedom Mobile call centre employees in Windsor, Ont. is protesting a decision by parent company Shaw Communications to shut the centre's doors, calling it an "unjustified attack on employees."

The United Steelworkers (USW) union says the telecom giant's relocation of the call centre to Victoria, B.C. will impact 130 employees and their families.

Shaw (SJRb.TO) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Word of the closure comes after the USW said in September that Freedom Mobile threatened to lock out its Windsor call centre employees -- which joined the union in January 2017 -- amid negotiations of a first collective bargaining agreement.

The closure also comes after Ontario's minimum wage increased to $14 per hour from $11.60 on Jan. 1, ahead of a $15 target rate by Jan. 1, 2019.

Lee Riggs, national president of the Telecommunications Workers Union and USW National Local 1944, says it's unclear whether the minimum wage hike played a role in the closure. USW says the median hourly pay in the Windsor bargaining unit is $13.68.