LCBO deal ratified, stores to reopen Tuesday after strike

The LCBO says stores will reopen on Tuesday after the union representing 10,000 of its workers ratified a new contract with the liquor retailer on Sunday to end the strike that led to the two-week closure of stores.

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario confirmed the ratification in a press release on Sunday, saying the strike would officially end at 12:01 a.m. on Monday and stores would reopen to customers the next day.

LCBO workers represented by the Ontario Public Service Employees Union voted in favor of the three-year collective agreement, OPSEU said in a press release on Sunday.

“We went on strike to protect good jobs and public revenues and to fight for more permanent jobs with benefits and guaranteed working hours,” said Colleen MacLeod, chair of the OPSEU negotiating team, in the press release. “Our members stood strong. They took clear positions, talked to their communities – and they won.”

The LCBO released details of the agreement on Friday, which includes an eight percent wage increase over three years, the conversion of about 1,000 casual employees to permanent part-time positions and no store closures during the term of the agreement.

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The ratification came after the deal was still in limbo on Friday after both OPSEU and the LCBO announced that a tentative agreement had been reached, but the union said the strike would continue because the employer refused to sign a return-to-work protocol.

Both sides accused each other of negotiating in bad faith, with the employer announcing that it would file a complaint of unfair labor practices.

However, the LCBO issued a statement on Saturday saying both sides had signed the protocol and reopening plans were back on track.

“While we welcome back our valued employees, we are focused on resuming our normal operations to support our retail and wholesale customers and Ontario’s alcoholic beverage industry,” the LCBO said in a statement on Sunday.

OPSEU said the strike, which began on July 5 and was the first of its kind in LCBO history, was about protecting union jobs and the province’s public revenues amid Premier Doug Ford’s plans to allow convenience stores and grocery stores to sell ready-to-drink cocktails.

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