Better wages, job protection, in new contract with big Manitoba grocer

WINNIPEG – About 3,500 workers at Superstore, Extra Foods, and No Frills stores in Manitoba have ratified a new contract with Loblaw.

United Food and Commercial Workers Local 832 says in a statement posted to its website that the five-year agreement — voted on by its members on Sunday — improves wages and protects full-time positions.

The union also says the deal includes improved health and welfare benefits, including enhanced sick time.

As well, the UFCW will work with Loblaw on a program to hire and retain persons with disabilities.

The ratification comes after the union and Loblaw reached a tentative contract on Sept. 28.

The statement did not contain details of Sunday’s vote or the wage increase, and there was no immediate comment from Loblaw on the ratification.

“Our bargaining committee achieved real gains for themselves and their coworkers at Loblaw,” union local president Jeff Traeger said in the statement. “In an increasingly challenging industry, I’m proud of the hard work that this committee has put in.”