More than 9,000 LCBO workers are set to walk off the job on Friday after talks with the Crown Corporation broke down. They’ll be in a legal strike position at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Jul 5.
“Doug Ford wants to make life better for his wealthy friends. It’s why he’s wasting upwards of a billion dollars of our money to fast-track privatized alcohol sales and hand more of the public revenues generated by the LCBO over to the CEOs and big box grocery and convenience chains like Loblaws and Circle K,” said OPSEU/SEFPO President JP Hornick in a media release today. “We told Ford not to ruin everybody’s summer, but now he’s closed the Science Centre and forced a dry summer for Ontarians by refusing to offer a deal that would be good for LCBO workers and Ontario.”
According to the release, 70 percent of LCBO workers are casual—they don’t have guaranteed hours, which means most won’t have access to benefits and there aren’t opportunities to move into permanent part-time and full-time positions. “We want a better future for our members, the LCBO, and Ontario.”
The province announced in May that it would be further expanding the sale of alcohol products in Ontario beyond LCBO retail stores.
“Throughout negotiations, the union proposed an alternative plan to Ford’s alcohol everywhere scheme and made it clear to Ford and the LCBO we’re ready to strike for it,” states the release from the union.
According to the LCBO, if workers walk off the job, stores will close for 14 days. After 14 days, only 30 of the 669 LCBO retail stores across the province will open for in-store shopping. They will operate on limited hours for three days a week, on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
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Here’s the scoop. 61.5% of the price of your booze is tax (use to be 50%, Trudeau just cranked it again). Ford is simply trying to sell more, to make more $$$ versus introducing new taxes like the liberals have been on a warpath doing. Ontario doesn’t need to be paying clerks $40/hr to sell you liquor nor does it need to be paying rent on all these LCBO buildings. This needs to be privatized yesterday like they have done in so many other provinces. SK was the latest to turf them and survey says the private businesses are better. I just stocked up at a small bakery, in Ontario, so I dont know what the union thinks they are achieving with this besides attempting to hold the public hostage for their own greed, as usual.
Once again Ford fails to get a deal with a public union.
Without an arbitrator or the courts getting involved as in his illegal Bill 124.
Or flip flopping in a couple of days as with CUPE.
Ford must be losing his mind.
Buck-a-beer Ford is all about making booze more accessible.
What is with his obsession with booze?
He needs to sort out his priorities.
$1.1 billion/year cost of eliminating licence plate sticker renewals.
100s of millions of public dollars for a parking garage for a private spa.
100s of millions of taxpayer dollars to make booze more accessible.
Not a dime for minor roof repairs at the Science Centre.
It costs double to create a temporary Science Centre, 1/10 the size, compared to simply fixing the roof.
Flip Flop Ford needs to flip flop on that one.