TORONTO — More than 9,000 LCBO workers represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) are now on strike after talks broke down at the bargaining table yesterday.
All 669 retail locations will close for a period of 14 days. On July 19, if a deal hasn’t been reached by the two sides, just 32 LCBO stores will open province-wide for in-store shopping but will only operate on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays with limited hours. Mobile orders through the LCBO’s website and app will continue, allowing for free home delivery anywhere in Ontario for the duration of the strike.
“Doug Ford wants to make life better for his wealthy friends. It’s why he’s wasting upwards of $1 billion of our money to fast-track privatized alcohol sales and hand more of the public revenues generated by the LCBO over to the CEOs and big-box grocery and convenience chains such as Loblaws and Circle K,” says OPSEU/SEFPO president JP Hornick.
“We know that the LCBO is Ontario’s best kept secret – and we’re fighting to protect it,” says Colleen MacLeod, Chair of OPSEU/SEFPO’s Liquor Board Employees Division (LBED) and the Bargaining Team. “We’ve been very clear that we won’t back down in our fight for a strong future for the LCBO and the public services funded by LCBO revenues.”
Throughout negotiations, the union proposed an alternative plan to Ford’s privatized alcohol sales, arguing that they grow the LCBO to meet demand and increase convenience by opening more stores, increasing hours of operation and increasing warehousing, logistics and e-commerce capacity. Doing this will also expand public revenues by increasing LCBO sales which help fund public services such as health care and education as well as key infrastructure.
Additionally, the union’s plan would support more permanent part-time and permanent full-time job opportunities. Currently, 70 per cent of LCBO workers are casual meaning they don’t have guaranteed hours and most don’t have access to benefits.
