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Labour Reporter
Canadian
www.labour-reporter.com
July 21, 2014
Ex-Walmart staff in
Quebec win Supreme
Court victory
Company violated labour laws
after shuttering when workers certified
By SaBrina nanji
AftEr An AlmoSt decade-long battle, the union representing
employees at a now-defunct Walmart in Jonquiere, Que., has emerged
triumphant.
The superstore shuttered its doors back in 2005, just one year after
workers certified (and thereby becoming the first unionized Walmart in
North America) and after attempts to negotiate a collective agreement
proved fruitless. As bargaining went to an arbitrator, the company an-
nounced it would be closing that same year, effectively putting almost
200 staff out of work.
The United Food and Commercial Workers union (UFCW) imme-
diately sought recourse in the courts. While the company maintained
the store was no longer profitable, the union argued it closed its doors
GROCERY
Sourdough markets
territory-wide, Yukon
(46 retail employees) and the Teamsters Union Local 31
renewal agreement: Effective
July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2019.
Signed on Feb. 11, 2014.
Wage adjustments:
Effective July 1, 2013: 40¢ per
hour
Effective July 1, 2014: $1,000
lump sum payment for full-
time staff
Effective July 1, 2014: $750
Unions keep eye on Wynne
After winning the majority for the
Liberals in Ontario, Unifor has vowed
to hold Premier Kathleen Wynne
to her promises for a
labour-friendly agenda.
ArbitrAtion
AWArds
see Collective agreements > pg. 3
Retaliation leads to termination pg. 6
Group TVA - Quebec pg. 3 Sunset Manor - Alberta pg. 4 Treasury
Board - East coast pg. 4 Town of Vegreville - Alberta pg. 5 Somavrac
- Quebec pg. 5
Green light stops safety
at Vale, conductor fired
AftEr miSrEAdinG track
traffic signals, a conductor was
found guilty of endangering him-
self and his coworkers, and was
rightfully fired, an arbitrator has
ruled.
Wayne Denny, a train conduc-
tor at a Vale mine operation in
Ontario since 2007, was fired in
2012 after giving the go-ahead to
a locomotive engineer to proceed
onto the track of a smelter when it
was not safe to do so.
Though Denny claimed the
ColleCtive
Agreements
ColleCtive
Agreements
ArbitrAtion
AwArds
Photo:
Mike
Cassese
(Reuters)
The Supreme Court ruled Walmart violated Quebec's labour laws
when it shut down almost 10 years ago after workers certified — be-
coming the first unionized Walmart in North America.
Negotiate with confidence.
Mock sessions. Best practices. Program leaders with real-world experience.
Choose Queen's IRC and thrive in your next negotiation session.
i r c . q u e e n s u . c a
see Arbitration > pg. 6
pg. 2
see Case > pg. 7
