Some 420 workers at the Molson-Coors South Shore brewing plant went on an indefinite strike Friday morning in Longueuil.
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“Since the merger with Coors in 2005, our working conditions have deteriorated. Decisions are made from Milwaukee since the merger with Miller a few years ago, and it’s even worse,” denounced the local union president of the Teamsters, Éric Picote.
Last Sunday, nearly 320 workers present at a union meeting voted 99% against the latest employer offers and in the same proportion to give their union a strike mandate.
Insufficient wage increases under inflation, a layoff system that does not take seniority into account… union members do not digest the employers’ offers.
2.25% increases
Last Tuesday, The newspaper told the story of workers disappointed with the progress of negotiations with the bosses.
“With salary increases of 2.25% per year, while inflation exceeds 5%, it’s a little funny to me,” lamented Patrick Villeneuve, who works in brewing beer in Longueuil.
The employer, for its part, always said it hoped to find common ground.
“We are disappointed not to have been able to reach an agreement for the moment, but our objective remains to reach an agreement with our unionized employees that is both fair and equitable,” said Frédéric Bourgeois-LeBlanc, of Molson’s corporate communications.