Yonge and Mulock Metro worker Anna Bresolin has picketed outside her workplace for about three weeks now.
She and fellow workers in Newmarket and at 27 other GTA Metro stores have continued to strike for better wages.
With no end to a strike in sight and negotiations stalled, the Aurora resident said workers must remain strong.
“We need to stand up for ourselves and hold out as long as we can to get decent pay,” Bresolin, a part-time worker, said.
The Metro strike, which began July 29, will reach three weeks as of Aug. 19. Metro has said it has a serious offer, and the union refuses to come back to the bargaining table, but union members shot back that there is no offered upgrade from previous talks.
In total, about 3,700 workers represented by Unifor walked off the job in pursuit of better wages. This was despite the union negotiating a deal, which members ended up rejecting as not sufficient.
The deal “is better, but it’s not feasible with the times, with inflation with rent, with mortgages,” Bresolin said. “With the millions of dollars they’ve made, they need to cough up some more money and appreciate the employees that work here.”
In a news release Aug. 17, Metro said it has asked for a Ministry of Labour conciliator to help in the bargaining process. It said it had reached out last weekend to negotiate with the bargaining committee and the committee refused.
Metro laid out the details of the agreement it had previously negotiated with the union. It said the agreement included a significant benefits and pension increase, introducing paid sick days for part-time employees, putting full-time employees from 37 to 40 hours per week and hourly wage increases of $3.65 over four years (91 cents an hour per year) for full time and $2.65 over four years (66 cents an hour per year) for part time.
“Metro has a serious offer to present to the employees’ bargaining committee and the union, which is why we have been asking to get back to the bargaining table since last Saturday,” Metro vice-president, public affairs and communications Marie-Claude Bacon said. “The union's steadfast refusal to come back to the bargaining table or to use the conciliator’s assistance to help us resolve the situation is disappointing. The parties must be at the bargaining table to resolve this dispute.”
In response, Unifor said the path forward is for Metro to come back with an improved wage offer.
"What the company presented doesn't come close to addressing the issues," the union said. "Metro cannot strongarm workers to accept a lesser contract and must return to the table with an offer that takes workers’ demands seriously."
Newmarket Metro worker Joanne Rhodes said it is a matter of the offer not improving.
“The reason is there is no new offer. The offer is the same. They’re not offering us anything different,” she said.
Bresolin said the increase proposed in the previously negotiated deal is not enough to keep up with inflation.
“They think we’ve been out almost three weeks, we’re willing to cave,” Bresolin added. “We’re not.”
Rhodes said striking has been difficult, with surprises along the way.
“Frustrated,” she said. “It’s long days. Feels like bizzaro world, not being at work.”
