Union gains ‘moral victory' over Wal-Mart

Union gains ‘moral victory' over Wal-Mart

By MARINA STRAUSS
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail

The certification of a union at a Wal-Mart in Quebec is a “tremendous moral victory” for other mobilization efforts among the chain's employees across Canada, a labour lawyer says.

Still, the certification doesn't mean that the union will be successful in winning a collective agreement for the 170 or so employees in Jonquière, Que., said Tim Gleason, a lawyer with the firm Sack Goldblatt Mitchell in Toronto.

“It can drag on for some time,” he said, adding that the process can be costly and difficult for the union.

On Monday, the Wal-Mart in Jonquière moved closer to becoming the giant U.S.-based retailer's sole unionized store in North America after the Quebec Labour Relations Board granted employees certification with the United Food and Commercial Workers union.

Wal-Mart Canada Corp. has yet to decide on its next step in its battle against unionization, although it is considering an appeal of the board decision.

“We respect the process in Quebec and we will continue to respect it,” Wal-Mart spokesman Andrew Pelletier said.

“We are disappointed that this situation did not resolve itself through an actual democratic, secret ballot vote. We believe that's the only way to be sure that workers are able to make an informed choice without any pressure or coercion from anybody.”

Indeed, in five provinces, the laws require a secret vote, making it much tougher to get certification, Mr. Pelletier said. Those provinces are Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.

Ontario changed its legislation after a unionization drive was successful in the 1990s at a Wal-Mart in Windsor, Ont. The provincial labour board had approved certification on the grounds that Wal-Mart management had intimidated employees during the union campaign.

The union was later decertified after employee support waned.

Meanwhile, Quebec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island have labour laws that make it easier for unions to get certification without a vote, through automatic certification if a majority of those in the bargaining unit sign union cards, labour lawyers said.

The UFCW currently has union drives at six other Wal-Mart stores, including another in Quebec, one in Manitoba, three in Saskatchewan and one in British Columbia.

In Jonquière, the UFCW last April lost by eight votes when 145 employees cast ballots. The union waited the prescribed three months and applied again before the provincial labour board.

Under Quebec law, the union didn't have to hold another vote, but only had to sign enough union cards among the 170 floor employees it had targeted for the bargaining unit.

Wal-Mart tried to dilute support for the union by asking the labour board to broaden the definition of the unit to include other staff, such as some managers, administrative employees, auto workshop employees and security guards.

However, the board ruled that no matter what the unit definition, “the applicant is representative, as required by law.”

A UFCW spokesman said Tuesday that a “substantial majority” of the workers signed the cards.

A hearing has been scheduled for Aug. 20 to decide the size of the bargaining unit.

Mr. Pelletier said the company believes that 29 employees should be added to the bargaining unit. But he agreed that the difference in numbers will not ultimately affect the certification decision.

Michael Fraser, national director of the United Food and Commercial Workers, said the certification will be a boost to employees at the six other Wal-Mart outlets that have already applied for union representation.

As well, it may spur other Wal-Mart employees to push for a union in their stores, he said.

“Hopefully this will be a little boost to some of those organizing campaigns and be an incentive for other Wal-Mart employees to follow suit and do the same as the people in Jonquière,” Mr. Fraser said.

John Mastoras, a partner representing employers at the law firm Ogilvy Renault, said he didn't think the Jonquière decision would necessarily spark a flurry of union activity at other Wal-Mart stores.

He said unions have had “surprisingly little success” mobilizing retail employees outside of the grocery sector.

And he pointed to the five provinces, including Ontario and British Columbia, where union certification without a secret vote is not possible.

In the other provinces, including Quebec, a vote is necessary if only between 35 per cent and 50 per cent of the bargaining unit's employees sign union cards, he said.

The UFCW is focusing on the Wal-Mart drive at a time when the world's largest retailer is expanding more into groceries, and putting significant pressure on supermarket chains that generally are unionized and have higher wage rates.

Wal-Mart's employees generally earn between $8 and $10 an hour, Mr. Fraser said. (Mr. Pelletier could not be reached about pay.) That compares with an average of as much as $16.50 an hour at some grocery chains.

Loblaw Cos. Ltd., Canada's largest grocer, set a precedent last year by lowering pay of some of its unionized employees in its new discount Real Canadian Superstores in Ontario. They are massive outlets with a large array of general merchandise along with food — set up to take on Wal-Mart.