Highbury Canco worker refutes claims made by company CEO
Workers emptying tomato wagons at Highbury Canco. October 16, 2015
(Photo by Kevin Black)
February 24, 2023
In light of the ongoing strike at Highbury Canco in Leamington, the company’s CEO has denied accusations of union busting, but workers say the facts and figures he is touting aren’t exactly accurate.
On February 13, about 400 members of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 175 who work at the food manufacturing plant went on strike after failing to agree with the employer’s final contract offer.
The main point of contention between the two parties is employee wages.
Now, Highbury Canco workers have been on strike for 11 days and are itching to get back to the bargaining table.
“We’re working hard out there, everybody is trying to keep their spirits up. Nobody wants to be on strike, obviously, but we’ve got a good group out there,” said Scott Jackson, the chief steward at Highbury Canco for UFCW Local 175.
While employees on the picket line are doing their best to stay positive, Jackson says the group is disheartened every morning and afternoon as they watch bus loads of “offshore workers” being transported to the facility.
At the Ontario legislature on Wednesday, Windsor West MPP Lisa Gretzky commented on the situation, claiming Highbury Canco is busing in replacement workers, paying them more than the permanent employees, and offering benefits. She calls the tactics “union busting.”
In response, Highbury Canco CEO Sam Diab admitted that his company had hired new workers, but the process began well before any labour disputes. He also said his company already offers “competitive” compensation, with starting wages at $19.14 an hour, and $20.48 for lift truck drivers and other machine operators.
Now, Jackson is stepping forward saying Diab’s claims aren’t exactly accurate.
The pay scale Diab outlined differs from what Jackson has observed during his time with the company. According to Jackson, employees’ starting wage is $17.60 hourly, and the second tier of pay is $18.60. Lead personnel can earn an hourly $19.60.
“The point is 70% of the workforce is under $19 an hour presently,” Jackson said. “So, we have a little bit of issues with the comments he was making and the rates he says he’s paying. Not sure where those numbers are coming from to be honest with you.”
Diab says pay at Highbury Canco is “competitive,” but according to Jackson, the company is not measuring up to facilities with similar operations in the region.
“In our area when we look at the competitors, we have a very, very high greenhouse workforce of migrant workers. When we compare that, it’s very competitive,” Jackson explained. “To me, what he should be comparing is to ElringKlinger and Sun Brite, other factories, other companies doing similar work. Not just… other companies that are greenhouses. It’s not really a fair comparison.”
At Sun Brite, starting pay is $20 an hour and up, Jackson says. Their lift truck drivers make $24 – $28 hourly, while Highbury Canco’s make $18.60.
“When we really compare apples to apples, we’re not competitive in my opinion,” Jackson added.
There is still no end in sight for the strike at Highbury Canco. Jackson says that, since workers did not accept the final offer, he believes the agreement will need to go through the Labour Board.
“If I had a message for Sam it’d be ‘let’s get back to the table,’ ‘let’s get this settled,’ Jackson said. “It’s not good for them and it’s not good for us. I know they’re losing a lot of productivity and we don’t want to lose customers. We just feel that we have created a skilled workforce that has basically made them one of the number one cofactorsin North America.”
In light of the ongoing strike at Highbury Canco in Leamington, the company’s CEO has denied accusations of union busting, but workers say the facts and figures he is touting aren’t exactly accurate.
On February 13, about 400 members of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 175 who work at the food manufacturing plant went on strike after failing to agree with the employer’s final contract offer.
The main point of contention between the two parties is employee wages.
Now, Highbury Canco workers have been on strike for 11 days and are itching to get back to the bargaining table.
“We’re working hard out there, everybody is trying to keep their spirits up. Nobody wants to be on strike, obviously, but we’ve got a good group out there,” said Scott Jackson, the chief steward at Highbury Canco for UFCW Local 175.
While employees on the picket line are doing their best to stay positive, Jackson says the group is disheartened every morning and afternoon as they watch bus loads of “offshore workers” being transported to the facility.
At the Ontario legislature on Wednesday, Windsor West MPP Lisa Gretzky commented on the situation, claiming Highbury Canco is busing in replacement workers, paying them more than the permanent employees, and offering benefits. She calls the tactics “union busting.”
In response, Highbury Canco CEO Sam Diab admitted that his company had hired new workers, but the process began well before any labour disputes. He also said his company already offers “competitive” compensation, with starting wages at $19.14 an hour, and $20.48 for lift truck drivers and other machine operators.
Now, Jackson is stepping forward saying Diab’s claims aren’t exactly accurate.
The pay scale Diab outlined differs from what Jackson has observed during his time with the company. According to Jackson, employees’ starting wage is $17.60 hourly, and the second tier of pay is $18.60. Lead personnel can earn an hourly $19.60.
“The point is 70% of the workforce is under $19 an hour presently,” Jackson said. “So, we have a little bit of issues with the comments he was making and the rates he says he’s paying. Not sure where those numbers are coming from to be honest with you.”
Diab says pay at Highbury Canco is “competitive,” but according to Jackson, the company is not measuring up to facilities with similar operations in the region.
“In our area when we look at the competitors, we have a very, very high greenhouse workforce of migrant workers. When we compare that, it’s very competitive,” Jackson explained. “To me, what he should be comparing is to ElringKlinger and Sun Brite, other factories, other companies doing similar work. Not just… other companies that are greenhouses. It’s not really a fair comparison.”
At Sun Brite, starting pay is $20 an hour and up, Jackson says. Their lift truck drivers make $24 – $28 hourly, while Highbury Canco’s make $18.60.
“When we really compare apples to apples, we’re not competitive in my opinion,” Jackson added.
There is still no end in sight for the strike at Highbury Canco. Jackson says that, since workers did not accept the final offer, he believes the agreement will need to go through the Labour Board.
“If I had a message for Sam it’d be ‘let’s get back to the table,’ ‘let’s get this settled,’ Jackson said. “It’s not good for them and it’s not good for us. I know they’re losing a lot of productivity and we don’t want to lose customers. We just feel that we have created a skilled workforce that has basically made them one of the number one cofactorsin North America.”
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