OPSEU launches LiqiLeaks: the real story of work at the LCBO
Media outlets across the province are reporting on the shocking working conditions at the LCBO, following the launch this past weekend of the new LiqiLeaks.ca website.
A province-wide ad campaign is bringing the public to the site, where they are hearing the stories of working conditions from the workers themselves.
OPSEU President Warren (Smokey) Thomas joined members for an information picket at the Summerhill LCBO in Toronto, and spoke to media outlets about how the actions of senior management “have brought the situation to the brink of a strike.”
“Here we have a profitable Crown corporation that should be setting an example for how employers should treat their workers,” said Thomas. “Instead, we’re seeing LCBO management joining a race to the bottom with Walmart to see who can exploit their workers more.
“It’s shameful, and we’re not going to stand for it any longer.”
Denise Davis, chair of the OPSEU bargaining team, said that the stories shared by members on the site provide the public with a window into the lives of workers struggling under an uncaring employer.
“The most heart-breaking thing about those stories is that it doesn’t have to be this way,” said Davis. “The solutions we’re proposing aren’t radical, they’re just a few common-sense steps we can take together to build a better LCBO. All it takes is for management to acknowledge the need to do better, and work with us to make these changes.
“Then this Crown corporation can do what it should have been doing all along, and lead by example.”
Sign up for strike pay!
With the strike deadline coming up on June 26, all members should make sure that they have filled out a copy of Form B. A copy must be filled out and sent to OPSEU in order to get your strike pay. If you haven’t yet signed up, make sure you do so this week, and use the online option to send it in so it’s received in time.
Information pickets pass the 100-picket milestone
OPSEU members at the LCBO have been holding information pickets in communities large and small across Ontario since May 10. This week, they passed the 100-picket milestone, having now held 105 pickets to share their plan for a better LCBO with the public. Please see the print version available at the bottom of this page to see photos sent in by members from pickets that were held in the last few days.
OPSEU First-Vice President/ Treasurer writes to major banks and credit unions
OPSEU First Vice-President/Treasurer Eduardo (Eddy) Almeida has written to all major banks and credit unions in Ontario about the risk of a strike. In these letters, he asks for their cooperation if OPSEU members at the LCBO require assistance with loan payments in the event of a strike.
Members can take a copy of the relevant letter with them when meeting with their bank or credit union – copies of the letters are available on the OPSEU website.
Have a picture from Sticker Day?
Did you take a picture with your colleagues wearing your “A Better LCBO, Together” stickers as part of our Week of Action? Send it in to [email protected] so that we can include it in a future bargaining bulletin. Let’s show our unity in the face of the employer’s attempts to divide us!
Do you receive pay in lieu of benefits? Sign up for strike benefits!
As per OPSEU policy, OPSEU members at the LCBO who currently receive a percentage in lieu of benefits in their pay are eligible to enroll for limited benefits under the OPSEU Joint Trusteed Benefit Fund – known as the OJTBF for short. These benefits will be available to members in the event of a strike at the LCBO. To be eligible for strike benefits, members must complete and send the enrollment form to the OJTBF. Members who qualify should visit the OPSEU website for more information and to fill out an enrollment form.
OPSEU members at the LCBO who currently receive benefits from the employer do not need to sign up. As per OPSEU policy, OPSEU is currently negotiating with the employer the continuation of benefits in the event of a strike.
Meet your mobilizers!
In collective bargaining, power comes from the support of union members. Experience has shown that employers move at the bargaining table when members take action inside and outside the workplace. To help build that power, OPSEU has booked off 15 mobilizers, elected by LBED members at your Pre-Bargaining Conference in April 2016. These mobilizers, who are your co-workers at the LCBO, are on union leave, starting Monday, February 27. They will work to build support for your elected bargaining team and the bargaining priorities you selected during demand-setting.
Region 1
Guy Jeremschuk
[email protected]
David Holmes
[email protected]
Michael Peris
[email protected]
Colm Kieran
[email protected]
Region 2
Bonnie Jolley
[email protected]
Judy Irving
[email protected]
Shawn Swayze
[email protected]
Jessica Turgeon
[email protected]
Region 3
Eileen Allen
[email protected]
Tammy Rogers
[email protected]
Mellisa Jackson
[email protected]
Rick Woodall
[email protected]
Region 4
Dianne Perry
[email protected]
Mathieu Royer
[email protected]
Jeff Scobie
[email protected]
Paula Sossi
[email protected]
Region 5
Craig Hadley
[email protected]
Nick Papadimitriou
[email protected]
Adriana Bertoni
[email protected]
Debbie McGuinness
[email protected]
Sam Cheadle
[email protected]
Region 6
Amanda Pellerin
[email protected]
Judy Jones
[email protected]
Lianne Burke
[email protected]
Leslie Gagnon
[email protected]
Region 7
Rob Mithrush
[email protected]
Anne Makela
[email protected]
Elaine Johnson
[email protected]
Meet your bargaining team
The OPSEU bargaining team for the Liquor Board Employees Division consists of five members:
Denise Davis, Chair, Local 378
Colleen MacLeod, Vice-Chair, Local 5107
Jennifer Van Zetten, Local 162
Robin Reath, Local 163
Mark Larocque, Local 499
The bargaining team is assisted by OPSEU Negotiator Jeff Weston, Researcher Steve Crossman, and other assigned staff.
Contact us by email at [email protected]
Stay informed!
You can receive this bargaining bulletin (and our regular newsletter, the Echo) directly by e-mail. Just call OPSEU at 1-800-268-7376 or (416) 443-8888, and give the operator your name and e-mail address.
You can also watch for updates on the OPSEU website at www.opseu.org/LBEDbargaining. And be sure to attend upcoming bargaining information meetings in your area.