LCBO stores across Ontario are set to reopen tomorrow.
OPSEU members ratified a new deal with the liquor retailer on Sunday, ending a two-week long strike.
LCBO officials say the new three-year deal includes an eight per cent wage increase over the length of the contract, the conversion of about 1,000 casual employees to permanent part-time positions, and no store closures over the next three years.
The union’s bargaining team chair, Colleen MacLeod, said workers went on strike to protect good jobs and public revenue, and to win more permanent jobs with benefits and guaranteed hours, and their members won.
The new contract also includes a guarantee of no store closures and a cap on the number of agency stores. The union says there is a shared commitment to a future in which the LCBO, and its revenues, continue to grow with Ontario.
“In my 27 years at the LCBO, the employer has continuously casualized the workforce, so that people wouldn’t get guaranteed hours, benefits or any hope of permanent work. Permanent part-time nearly went extinct,” said MacLeod. “I am beyond proud that we fought back and won these permanent jobs – it will improve the lives of workers and their families for many years to come.”
