CBC
Mon, November 20, 2023
Workers at a Kamloops A&W location have unionized, with an organizer saying that they are looking for clarity on the benefits provided to employees.
(A&W Food Services of Canada Inc. - image credit)
A group of workers in Kamloops, B.C., are believed to be the first staff at a Canadian A&W restaurant to successfully unionize.
Thirteen people who work at the Valleyview location signed union cards and were certified with the B.C. Labour Relations Board on Friday, according to Local 993 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW).
Brian Andrews, an organizer for Local 993, says the workers have issues with how the managers are treating them and they are looking for clarity and consistency when it comes to the discounts they receive on A&W meals during their shifts.
"Management aren't trained correctly on actual management issues, and when they come in to work they treat their employees with disrespect ... by yelling and screaming and demanding and ordering them around," he said.
Brian Andrews of Local 993 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers told CBC News that even though workers at a Kamloops, B.C., A&W restaurant aren't electricians like the majority of the IBEW's members, the union took the group on because they wanted to see them succeed.
Brian Andrews of Local 993 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers told CBC News that the union took the A&W employees on because they wanted to see them succeed. (Jenifer Norwell/CBC)
Andrews said an employee found the IBEW online and contacted them, saying they liked the benefits that the union had secured for its other non-electrician members through collective agreements.
CBC News has contacted A&W Canada for comment.
The burger chain is headquartered in North Vancouver, B.C., with its website saying there are over 1,000 locations across Canada.
Andrews says the union took the group on because they wanted to see them succeed.
"Working with a major company like A&W, they're known to be anti-union and so we kind of just have to run with it," he said.
"We said, 'we should just jump on this and get them unionized as quick as possible.'"
Twenty people were employed at the restaurant at the time of certification, but Andrews said the number of workers employed during the card-signing drive fluctuated because of a high staff turnover rate at the restaurant.
A group of workers in Kamloops, B.C., are believed to be the first staff at a Canadian A&W restaurant to successfully unionize.
Thirteen people who work at the Valleyview location signed union cards and were certified with the B.C. Labour Relations Board on Friday, according to Local 993 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW).
Brian Andrews, an organizer for Local 993, says the workers have issues with how the managers are treating them and they are looking for clarity and consistency when it comes to the discounts they receive on A&W meals during their shifts.
"Management aren't trained correctly on actual management issues, and when they come in to work they treat their employees with disrespect ... by yelling and screaming and demanding and ordering them around," he said.
Brian Andrews of Local 993 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers told CBC News that even though workers at a Kamloops, B.C., A&W restaurant aren't electricians like the majority of the IBEW's members, the union took the group on because they wanted to see them succeed.
Brian Andrews of Local 993 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers told CBC News that the union took the A&W employees on because they wanted to see them succeed. (Jenifer Norwell/CBC)
Andrews said an employee found the IBEW online and contacted them, saying they liked the benefits that the union had secured for its other non-electrician members through collective agreements.
CBC News has contacted A&W Canada for comment.
The burger chain is headquartered in North Vancouver, B.C., with its website saying there are over 1,000 locations across Canada.
Andrews says the union took the group on because they wanted to see them succeed.
"Working with a major company like A&W, they're known to be anti-union and so we kind of just have to run with it," he said.
"We said, 'we should just jump on this and get them unionized as quick as possible.'"
Twenty people were employed at the restaurant at the time of certification, but Andrews said the number of workers employed during the card-signing drive fluctuated because of a high staff turnover rate at the restaurant.
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