Interview with Veteran Liquor Control Board of Ontario Worker
The following is an interview with a 30-year veteran worker at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) and member of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), currently on strike for better wages, benefits and job security, and against the Ford Government plans to further privatize the Crown Corporation.
TML: The issue of job security is front and centre in the LCBO workers' strike. What is the current situation and what is needed to protect worker's rights in light of the fast-tracked expansion of beer and wine sales and ready-to-drink beverages in the private sector?
LCBO
Worker: What is needed is a solid
guarantee that the workers will keep their jobs despite the Ford
Government's plans to further privatize the LCBO, otherwise this is
merely a protest for severance. This strike is not only about wages and
working conditions. The
9,000 LCBO workers play an important role in the economy of Ontario at
the local and provincial level and also contribute to the economy of
Canada. Through their labour, LCBO workers generate a net profit for
Ontario to the tune of $2.5 billion annually and 80 per cent of this
comes from the LCBO
retail stores.
There is another aspect of this strike that is not spoken about by the government and is of concern to LCBO workers. The Ford government's schemes to hive off more of the LCBO to hand over to the private sector, such as to the Weston Family, is being presented to the people of Ontario as giving them "choices" and making it more convenient to access liquor products.
We are very concerned about the sale of beer and wine and especially of mixed drinks or ready-to-drink (RTD) beverages -- which is the most rapidly expanding category -- at Loblaw's or other big retailers. The problem is that this is a drink most favoured by kids -- it's sugary, fruity and you can't taste the alcohol. Teenagers will be vulnerable to the easy availability of liquor which will be much less rigorously monitored in grocery and convenience stores than in an LCBO store where the workers are focused and trained in their social responsibility to make sure there are no sales to minors.
RTDs are popular and sales are very profitable, which is why the Weston family want it. Premier Ford has even appointed a member of the Weston family, which controls Loblaws, to the LCBO Board and we wonder about what went on behind closed doors to make this cozy arrangement.
TML: You have noted that the privatization of the LCBO is not new. Can you explain how this Crown Corporation has slowly been dismantled and parts handed over to the private monopolies?
LCBO Worker: Since the beginning of its operation in 1927 the LCBO has been the subject of political debate over how it should operate. In election after election, voters have rejected parties that favour its privatization. The manner in which governments have bypassed the democratic wishes of the people and attempted to fool the public has been to lie and say that privatization is not on the agenda, while quietly selling the business piecemeal to the private sector. The agenda of successive governments, and in particular the Ford government, is also to attack and weaken the union. LCBO workers have produced net profits for the province of Ontario year after year and we have been a stable work force.
This is the first time LCBO workers have gone on strike to defend our rights as workers and get a just and fair contract that protects our jobs and the LCBO itself, which is a net benefit to Ontario and Canada. Besides attacking our jobs and livelihoods, this is open theft, turning a public enterprise that contributes to public funds into a private enterprise to benefit narrow private interests.
TML: Can you elaborate on the union's proposals for the government to increase investment in the LCBO retail operations, opening for longer hours, increasing the number of stores and the number of permanent staff etc.?
LCBO Worker: The union is open to negotiations on many points, but the essential demands are simple. Stop using zero-hour "casual" positions, where workers have no security, no guaranteed hours, no guarantee that they can make a living. Casual employees make up 70 per cent of the LCBO workforce. Hardworking people are forced to sacrifice everything for the vague hope of a permanent position with some stability some time in the future. It's a brutal and cynical violation of workers' rights and makes it impossible for many to continue to work for the LCBO.
OPSEU has called for the building of more LCBO stores and an increase in operating hours and staff to meet increasing demands. We want casual workers to be made permanent, not treated as slave labour with no pensions, benefits or guaranteed hours of work. Hardworking people should not be forced to sacrifice everything for the vague hope of a decent wage in the future.
The union has called for the strengthening of the LCBO as a public asset which supports local communities, the tourism industry and other sectors of the economy. That is why we are calling on the public, our neighbours and fellow workers to stand with us, come and join our picket lines as we defend our rights and what is in the public interest in Ontario.
This article was published in
Volume 54 Number 6 - July 2024
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2024/Articles/M5400611.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca