It will be business as usual at Sobeys stores across the province after workers at Sobeys Milton Retail Support Centre voted in favour of a new contract.

The centre, which is a main warehouse and distribution facility for central Ontario Sobeys stores, employs 560 workers who are members of UFCW Canada Local 175. During a membership meeting held here earlier today, the workers voted 82% in favour of ratifying the company's most recent proposal. Their current contract expires at 12:01 a.m, on Sunday, February 1, 2004.

"Winning this new contract is a victory for these workers," says UFCW Canada Local President, Wayne Hanley. "Because of the determination and resolve of the membership the union committee was able to negotiate improved pension, health & welfare benefits and wages."

The ratification follows a January 27 vote which rejected the company's earlier proposal and a prior January 24 membership meeting when an overwhelming majority voted in favour of strike action. A strike would have jeopardized the grocer's ability to maintain product selection and ensure a steady delivery flow of fresh products in the stores.

Sobeys shoppers in much of the province can expect a more limited selection, of less than fresh products in the stores, if the parent company fails to negotiate a renewal to its contract with nearly 600 workers at the Sobeys Milton Retail Support Centre. The current contract expires at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, February 1, 2004.

An overwhelming majority of the workers, who attended a membership meeting on January 24, 2004, voted in favour of strike action. At that time, contract talks for Sobeys' central warehouse and distribution facility had stalled already over issues including worker pensions, benefits and wages.

On January 27, 98 percent of the workers, who attended a meeting in Milton, rejected the company's "final" offer. Unless the company makes a better offer, the union will be forced, within the next few days, to exercise the strong strike mandate given by the members.

"These workers are angry," says Local 175 President Wayne Hanley. "If a strike begins, Local 175 and its members will do whatever is necessary to take our members' message to Sobeys' suppliers and customers."

As of January 4, 2004 eligible employees can receive up to six weeks of benefits to care for a critically ill spouse, child, parent, father-in-law or mother-in-law.

This new policy is called the Compassionate Care Policy. The application must be accompanied by a doctor's note saying the family member is at significant risk of dying within the next 26 weeks. There are some restrictions and limitations to qualify so please check the Government of Canada EI Web site for details.

Four fitness clubs in Hamilton could soon become some of the first unionized fitness facilities in Canada.

The workers at Family Fitness and Exclusively Women’s Centres are seeking job security, dignity and respect, and an opportunity to negotiate a binding collective agreement with their employer. The employees asked the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW Canada) Local 175 to assist them in their organizing drive.

The Employee Organizing Committee and the union have been finding numerous barriers impeding the workers from exercising their right to freely join the union. Local 175 is actively supporting the workers’ struggle for improved working conditions and the right to bargain collectively.

“These employees are determined to bring fairness, respect and dignity to their workplaces, no matter what hurtles are thrown in their way,” says UFCW Canada Local 175 Organizer Kevin Shimmin. “I would encourage all citizens of Hamilton, especially those who exercise at Family Fitness and Exclusively Women’s, to tell the employees – and their employers – that you support their right to join a union and bargain collectively.”

Between January and July, we offer three online courses as part of our Local’s ongoing efforts to improve and expand educational and training services for union members and their families.

Courses offered are Introduction to Health & Safety 101 Part 1, Introduction to Health & Safety 101 Part 2 and Introduction to the Union & Stewardship 101.

For more information or to enrol in any of the above courses, contact the Training & Education Centre at tcadmin@ufcw175.com or by phone at 905-564-2500 or 1-800-728-8902.

Learn basic self-defence and awareness tactics to help you stay safe from day to day. Three classes are available between January 25 and April 17 at two different locations. Check out the course description and schedules for the Mississauga Training & Education Centre or the Hamilton office.

For more information contact the Training & Education Centre at tcadmin@ufcw175.com or by phone at 905-564-2500 or 1-800-728-8902.

Arbitrator Peter Barton issued a decision in favour of the Union in a hearing involving Dresden Industries, located in Ridgetown, Ontario about 30 kilometres east of Chatham. The Grievor lived about an hour from the plant and got a ride to and from work with a coworker. After beginning parental leave, the Grievor realized that he, his wife and newborn baby could not live on the low Employment Insurance benefits he received. He took a lower paying job at a plant located five minutes from his house because he did not want to be stranded an hour from home if his young wife and newborn needed him.

When the employer found out he had another job, they fired him. The company claimed the Grievor was in violation of a clause in the collective agreement preventing an employee from taking another job while on an authorized leave of absence without the employer’s prior approval.

The Union and the Grievor successfully argued that the Employment Standards Act provides parental leave and it is not comparable to a leave of absence subject to the provisions of the collective agreement. The clause, therefore, did not apply to the Grievor’s circumstances. Arbitrator Barton reinstated the Grievor with back pay and the Grievor has since returned to full-time employment at the Dresden plant.

Part of Locals’ 175 & 633 commitment to the membership is to provide accessible and relevant learning opportunities for personal and professional advancement. In 2003, the number of members completing courses offered by the Locals increased by more than 26 per cent over the previous year.

The training centre offers a wide variety of course topics including computers, Study Skills, English and Math upgrading and English as a Second Language (ESL) to name just a few. Members from as far away as Thunder Bay attended in-class seminars, mobile computer lab courses or took part in distance education or last year’s new online courses, which will see further expansion in the future.

Recently, the training centre partnered with the Upper Canada District School Board to provide computers and English courses, to begin with, to members in the Cornwall area. This year will see the Locals continuing to partner with school boards across Ontario to help members achieve their high school diploma and new skills.

“Our past success only inspires us to create more opportunities for more of our members,” says Local 175 President Wayne Hanley.

In its inaugural year 642 members took courses through the centre. Seven years later, in 2003, more than five times that number benefited from the experience. This year, the training centre staff hopes to add several new opportunities to the list of courses available to the members. This includes, among several others, online courses in Health and Safety Part II, Canadian Labour History and An Introduction to ISO. In addition, PowerPoint and Desktop Publishing will be available through the mobile computer lab.

For more information contact the Training & Education Centre at 905-564-2500 or 1-800-728-8902.

Locals 175 & 633 are partnering with school boards across Ontario to make education more accessible in the community. One of the first programs will be in Cornwall. Here, the Local Unions, acting as a course sponsor, will work with the Upper Canada District School Board to ensure the greatest possible level of participation in – and success with – the program.

"We’re committed to doing whatever we can to help our members secure a better future," says Local 175 President Wayne Hanley. "Having access to a high school diploma program and good training will provide individuals with the new skills and knowledge they need to cope with the inevitable upheavals in the job market."

UFCW Canada members, or former members – such as those being laid off by Richelieu Hosiery – and their families will be given the first opportunity to enrol in the courses. The first two courses offered will be English and Computer Studies. Dates and locations for information sessions – or other details – about the courses are available by calling Kim Poirier at the Student Services Office, TR Leger Secondary School, 613-937-0120 extension 103.

The average Canadian worker now experiences about four career changes in a lifetime, usually due to business closures or corporate restructuring. Increasingly, formal educational credentials, such as a Grade 12 diploma, are a necessary stepping stone to new jobs and new opportunities. UFCW Canada Locals 175 & 633 have already run successful partnering programs, which saw a number of adult learners achieve their Grade 12 diplomas, in Kitchener, London and Hanover.

For more information contact: UFCW Locals 175 & 633 Training Director, Victor Carrozzino 1-800-728-8902.