Employees of Gate Gourmet were shocked when their employer interrupted their lunch break to tell them to take their personal effects and vacate the premises, as they were being locked out.
Talks between the parties, which began in July, were not going well prior to the lockout. The employer was demanding several major concessions, including a five-year wage freeze, hiring only part-time and seasonal employees (no full-time), member payment of 40 per cent of group insurance costs (currently paid entirely by the employer), reduced accessibility to insurance, a cut to shift premiums, abolition of the weekend premium, fewer statutory holidays, withdrawal of vacation weeks and elimination of numerous articles in the collective agreement dealing with non-monetary issues. The employer has tabled no fewer than 145 demands, all of which involve concessions. For its part, the union had not demanded any concessions.
“The simple fact is that the employer wants to abolish our collective agreement altogether,” noted François Arseneault, president of the local Unifor union.
