Nine months after the start of the strike, negotiations have stalled between the Société québécoise du cannabis (SQDC) and its unionized employees who refuse to be the ” cheap labor » Crown corporations.
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“We are at a complete impasse. The employer who has a flagrant lack of good faith has fallen into arrogance and contempt,” denounces David Clément, president of the local branch of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
The indefinite general strike affecting 24 of the 94 SQDC branches in Quebec, i.e. the majority of those that are unionized, has been going on since May 28, 2022.
But no meeting has been organized since the last employer’s offer which was refused by 94% last December, in particular because of a salary which is considered insufficient.
“Since December 11, we have an employer who is sitting on its laurels. The Treasury Board does not want to negotiate in good faith, it wants to impose collective agreements through fear,” said Mr. Clément.
Photo provided by David Clément
The president of the local union of CUPE which represents the employees of 26 branches of the SQDC, David Clément.
An insult ”
All SQDC advisers, except those represented by CUPE, have had an entry salary of $19.01/h since July 3, 2022, indicates the Crown Corporation. An amount that will increase to $19.39/h over the next few months.
The offer sent to CUPE members was similar, with a lump sum of $0.13/hour for 12 months, explains the union, which is ready to strike “as long as it takes”.
“We took that as an insult, it’s not true that we’re going to be the cheap labor state corporations. There is not one where employees earn less than $20.50/h when hired,” says Mr. Clément.
The management of the SQDC refused to comment on the evolution of the negotiations currently underway.
“We are still in contact with the conciliator of the Ministry of Labor and we remain available to continue the discussions”, was content to indicate Fanny Beaudoin, a spokesperson for the Crown corporation.
Back to the black market?
In the last quarter, which ended on December 31, 2022, the SQDC earned $32.2 million in profit, an increase of 18% compared to the same period the previous year.
However, “only” 31,274 kg of cannabis were sold during the quarter, compared to 31,998 kg (-2.26%) between October and December 2021.
“It shows that they made more money by raising prices. What we are seeing is that since June, there has been a migration from the legal market to the black market,” said the president of the CUPE local.
“The government made $32 million in net profit in three. All we need at the negotiating table is $1 million a year,” he adds.