2010
Agriculture Workers Alliance
The BC Labour Relations Board has certified a bargaining unit of more than 70 migrant agriculture workers after a majority of the workers voted to join UFCW Canada Local 1518.
AWA E-News
Agriculture Workers Alliance
The BC Labour Relations Board has certified a bargaining unit of more than 70 migrant agriculture workers after a majority of the workers voted to join UFCW Canada Local 1518.
New Westminster, BC - March 4, 2010 - The BC Labour Relations Board has certified a bargaining unit of more than 70 migrant agriculture workers after a majority of the workers voted to join UFCW Canada Local 1518. The workers come to Canada each season under the federal Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) and are employed by Sidhu & Sons Nursery Limited. Sidhu, with a central office in Mission, BC, operates half-a-dozen nursery locations across the Lower Mainland specializing in shrubbery, trees, and other landscape ornamental plants.
The SAWP workers at Sidhu are now the second certified bargaining unit represented by UFCW Canada Local 1518. Local 1518 also represents seasonal workers at Floralia Growers near Abbotsford, where a first collective agreement was ratified last September.
"We welcome the newest members at Sidhu," said UFCW Canada Local 1518 President Ivan Limpright. "This has been a long struggle, with many challenges by the employer, but at the end of the day these workers stood by their right to have a union and we’re there for them."
The unit was certified earlier this week after the ballots were tallied. UFCW Canada Local 1518 is now preparing a notice to the employer to commence bargaining.
The SAWP workers at Sidhu had actually cast their ballots over a year ago, but the ballot box had been sealed pending challenges from Sidhu. The employer argued that because it also employs domestic workers, a stand-alone unit of SAWP workers was not appropriate. But on February 9, after the union challenged the Vice Chair’s original decision, the reconsideration panel referred the award back to the Vice Chair. Then, after many days of hearings, he overturned his original decision in favour of the union. The Vice-Chair upheld the right of the SAWP workers to form their own bargaining unit if a majority of them voted to.
They did, "and it proves these workers want representation, and they want it from UFCW Canada," says Wayne Hanley, the National President of UFCW Canada. "This is a victory for the SAWP workers at Sidhu, and for all agriculture workers in Canada who want to exercise their constitutional right to unionize and bargain a collective agreement."
UFCW Canada is the country’s largest private-sector union, and in association with the AWA, operates nine agriculture worker support centres across Canada, including AWA centres in Surrey, Abbotsford, and Kelowna, BC. In addition to its British Columbia bargaining units, UFCW Canada also represents agriculture workers at locations in Quebec and Manitoba.
Upcoming events!
Mark your calendars for the upcoming events where AWA staff continues to educate the public about the struggles of our migrant agriculture brothers and sisters from abroad:
Tuesday March 9, 2010 from 7 to 9 pm an information and networking event will be held at the Faculty of Social Work in the University of Wilfrid Laurier.
AWA National Coordinator, Stan Raper will be part of the panel discussion on “Building Solidarity with Migrant Workers in Waterloo Region.” See poster for more information.
That same day from Noon to 2 pm, SAME –
Students Against Migrant Exploitation from Carleton University will have a Migrant Workers Forum and the screening of “Los Mexicanos.” See poster for more details.
Later that same week on March 12, 2010 from 7 to 9 pm, SAME members from Brock University will be having a panel discussion and a showing of “Harvest Pilgrims.” See poster for more details.
Agriculture and horticulture workers
Análisis de políticas
Trabajadores (in) migrantes, Conciencia Pública, y Los empleadores y las agencias de empleo
Derecho a organizarse y Normas Laborales
Colombia Británica
Francés, Inglés, y Español