Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) employees picket in front of a close LCBO store in downtown Ottawa on July 5, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
TORONTO – The Liquor Control Board of Ontario and the union representing 10,000 of its workers reached a tentative contract deal Friday to end a two-week-old strike.
The LCBO said in a statement that the tentative agreement will end the strike at 12:01 a.m. on Monday if it is ratified and the retailer is planning to reopen stores on Tuesday.
“We look forward to welcoming our unionized employees back to work in service of Ontarians,” the LCBO wrote in its statement.
“We recognize the disruption the strike caused for our employees, partners, and customers who rely on our services, and we thank everyone for their continued patience and understanding as we begin resuming regular operations.”
Workers represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union walked off the job July 5 and negotiations resumed Wednesday morning.
No details were immediately available about the terms of the deal, but OPSEU had said the dispute was largely about Premier Doug Ford’s plan to allow convenience and grocery stores to sell ready-to-drink cocktails. The union has said expanded sales of ready-to-drink beverages will threaten their jobs.
The LCBO had said that wasn’t a matter for the bargaining table. The last offer that it made public included wage increases of seven per cent over three years, a special adjustment for certain warehouse positions, improving access to benefits for casual part-timers, converting about 400 casual workers to permanent full time, and improving severance provisions.
Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said he was pleased the two sides reached a tentative agreement.
“This is a good deal for workers and welcome news for Ontarians,” he wrote in a statement. “We look forward to working together to deliver choice and convenience across Ontario.”
The union has not yet commented except to say the tentative deal was reached.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 19, 2024.
