Strike deadline set for metro grocery store workers across the GTA if deal not reached – Toronto

Metro grocery store workers in the Toronto area are set to strike if a deal between the union and the company is not reached next week.

Over 3,700 Unifor workers across 27 GTA metro stores are poised for a work stoppage pending a new collective agreement approved by the union.

Unifor Local 414 said on Thursday in a release that it has set a strike deadline by Tuesday, July 18 at 11:59 p.m.

Unifor National President Lana Payne pointed to the rising cost of living and the grocer’s large operating surplus as grounds for fair workers’ compensation.

“Unifor members at Metro deserve a collective agreement that not only addresses the significant affordability challenges they face but that also fairly distributes the company’s record profits with those on the frontlines generating those profits,” said Payne.

However, earlier this year, Metro Inc. CEO Eric La Fleche, testified in front of MPs that their profit margins have not changed despite the growing grocery bill for consumers.

Prior to negotiations, 100 per cent of Metro Unifor workers voted in favour of striking if representatives fail to reach an agreement.

The union said that negotiations with the grocery chain have progressed, but monetary issues such as wages and benefits have gone nowhere.

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