OCS call centre workers opt to unionize in unanimous vote

Call centre workers with the Ontario Cannabis Store have opted to unionize in unanimous vote on Tuesday this week.

 

 

Approximately 20 employees voted to join the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), which represents cannabis industry workers in the United States and parts of Quebec.

The union says that the drive prioritized reasonable schedules and job security for call centre employees at Line One Contact Centres, which is contracted to provide call centres and associated services to the OCS. Workers at the call centre currently face scheduling inconsistencies and no guarantee of minimum hours.

Organizer Kevin Shimmin says that the union is demanding that call centre workers hired through a temp agency are given the same considerations and protections as those hired by the company, which he says is challenging seven ballots cast by temp agency workers.

UFCW filed an earlier complaint with the Ontario Labour Relations Board against Line One for unfair labour practice, alleging that former employee Adam Jasar was terminated for conferring about unionization with coworkers and subsequently contacting UFCW, with whom employees eventually met.

Line One president Kyle Ostermann told the Toronto Star this week that the company intends to “vigorously defend” itself against the complaint, and that “the allegations contained in the complaint are entirely without merit.”

The OCS has declined to get involved, citing the fact that it does not own or operate the call centre.

The Ontario Public Service Employees Union is similarly engaged in an attempt to unionize nearly 200 OCS warehouse employees, in a facility run by contractor Domain Logistics.

UFCW is currently also fighting a labour law exclusion that forbids Ontario workers in the agricultural sector from unionizing or engaging in collective bargaining.