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Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2018
Unifor delivers
strike mandate
to Lear in
Ajax, Ont.
AJAX, Ont. — Workers at Lear
Corporation in Ajax, Ont., de-
livered a strike mandate on April
22, putting the union and its 320
workers in a legal strike position
as of April 28.
"This vote sends a strong mes-
sage of solidarity and support
for our bargaining agenda" said
Shane Wark, assistant to the
Unifor national president.
"We are determined to nego-
tiate a fair deal for our members
who have given their bargaining
committee full backing to pro-
ceed to strike action if needed,"
said Wark.
The workers — represented
by Unifor Local 222 — voted 99
per cent in favour of strike ac-
tion, said the union.
Lear Ajax is a just-in-time
seating supplier for Fiat Chrysler
Automobiles' Brampton, Ont.,
assembly plant.
"Unifor is seeking to eliminate
the current pay disparity in the
seat-manufacturing sector," said
Colin James, Unifor local presi-
dent.
"It's our hope that a strike
can be avoided, but the clock is
running out for the employer to
come to the table with a fair offer
said James.
Workers sign
new agreement
at Lounsbury
Automotive
BATHURST, N.B. — The In-
ternational Association of Ma-
chinists and Aerospace Workers
(IAM), Local Lodge 2418 signed
a new collective agreement on
April 19 with Lounsbury Au-
tomotive in Bathurst, N.B., and
added three additional members
to the unit.
"The collective agreement had
expired at the end of January so
instead of applying to the labour
board to amend the certification,
we decided to seek voluntary
recognition at the bargaining
table," said Rick Arsenault, IAM
grand lodge representative.
A request for voluntary recog-
nition of three service advisors
into the local and the current
collective agreement was ini-
tially rejected by the employer,
according to IAM.
The new three-year agree-
ment provides wage increases of
nine per cent over the life of the
agreement, said the union.
Other agreement highlights
include an increased safety-boot
allowance, an increased tool al-
lowance and a signing bonus of
$400 in lieu of retroactive pay,
said IAM.
Le Centre
Sheraton
agents
join Unifor
MONTREAL — Reservations
agents at Le Centre Sheraton
Montreal Hotel are now part of
Unifor, following a recent deci-
sion by Quebec's Administrative
Labour Tribunal to grant certifi-
cation.
The decision by the tribunal
on April 12 paves the way for the
agents to join Unifor, Local 2609
as an add-on department to the
existing bargaining unit, which
represents about 400 members
workers at Le Centre Sheraton.
The local signed a four-year
collective agreement last year
that included three per cent
wage increases each year, im-
proved vacation and sick-day
provisions and improvements
to bonus and scheduling provi-
sions, said Unifor.
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LABOUR LENS
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