About three dozen drivers at the Salvation Army distribution centre in Port Kells are off the job after starting a strike Wednesday, Aug. 16.
The Unifor Local 114 members rejected a second offer by the Salvation Army last week and were off the job the next day, explained Ben Wolters, a truck driver with the centre since 2015 and speaking on behalf of the striking workers.
The drivers move thrift store and other goods around an area stretching around the South Coast as far west as the western boundary with 91原创 (about 200th Street). The distribution and recycling centre where they are based is at 19733 96th Ave., which also has a thrift store and regional office.
The contract expired March 31. There鈥檚 been negotiations since about late May. He said they are looking for an increase to allow members to survive the high inflation.
Wolters said the employer offered about 3.5 per cent the first year, and 2.5 per cent for subsequent years of a four-year contract. Members rejected that.
A second offer was for an additional $1.10 per hour as well as a $500 signing bonus, and 70 cents per hour for years two, three and four. That equated to about four per cent in year one and two in years two through four. The offer was also rejected.
鈥淚n the Lower Mainland if you don鈥檛 get six per cent, you鈥檙e losing that equity, and we鈥檝e been behind the eight-ball with twos and one per cent offerings for the last six years,鈥� he said.
There have been no talks since the offer was rejected.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not anywhere close to what we deserve, but a lot of a lot of folks here live paycheck to paycheck,鈥� he commented.
Wolters said the members would likely have accepted the second offer if there weren鈥檛 issues with the treatment of workers.
He calls the organization 鈥減enny wise and pound foolish鈥� for nit-picky micromanagement and spending that ultimately costs much more than it should. He pointed to renting transport trucks for hundreds of dollars a day instead of buying them outright. The difference could have funded rate of inflation increases for the drivers, he said.
As well, Wolters said the organization has a $1.5 billion reserve and had record sales during and since the pandemic. He said sales last year were in the area of $300 million.
鈥淭he West Coast is most profitable center in all Canada, and we鈥檝e generated a lot of revenue here,鈥� Wolters said.
He said it appears the Salvation Army is using contract workers through a junk removal firm but claiming it is only for garbage pickup which is one of the duties of the unionized drivers.
鈥淲e can鈥檛 prove it because the closing the doors so that we can鈥檛 see what they鈥檙e doing but they have been using them to do our pickups and deliveries they say they鈥檙e just picking up garbage. What鈥檚 that? Still our job. And so we filed a grievance,鈥� he said.
Wolters characterized the management as 鈥渄ogmatic about chasing us about every minute where we spend everywhere鈥� to pinch pennies so trust is a big issue for the workers.
The Salvation Army did not answer specific questions about its finances but did comment.
鈥淥utside of our administrative expenses, the funds generated by our stores go to support local Salvation Army programs and services such as food banks, shelters, rehabilitation for those struggling with addictions, modern slavery and human trafficking prevention, and emergency relief efforts,鈥� said Lindsay Robinson, national director of marketing and communications.
She said the organization had been working with the local and national union to find a solution. The negotiating committee signed off on both offers.
鈥淚t is evident that the union is struggling to hold up their end of the bargain, and while we find it frustrating to be in this position, we respect the process of negotiations,鈥� she added.
During the strike, the distribution centre, thrift store and regional office are closed.
鈥淲e have pre-existing agreements with contracted transportation and waste removal services who are carrying out the services which were part of our original agreement prior to any bargaining with the union. Our management and supervisory staff are doing the jobs traditionally done by the unionized trucking staff. All practices which are in compliance with the ministry of labor laws,鈥� Robinson said.
She added that the strike does not affect the program and services offered in the community.
On Wednesday, the Salvation Army asked the public to stop dropping off donations during the labour dispute.
This is an extremely challenging situation for us to be in, and it鈥檚 having a negative impact on our local community,鈥� said Cory Mitic, territorial director of employee and labour relations. 鈥淲e鈥檙e finding ourselves in a position where we are unable to process the high volume of donations in the Greater Vancouver area, and while we are so grateful to our loyal donors, the safety and well-being of our staff who have stepped in to bridge the gap during this strike is our top priority.鈥�
The organization has 96 thrift stores across Canada but the labour dispute impacts stores from 91原创 west to the coast.
鈥淎fter reaching two tentative agreements that were ultimately rejected by our employees, it is evident that the union is struggling to hold up their end of the bargain,鈥� said Mitic. 鈥淲e consider the employees impacted, some of whom have been with us for many years, as members of our family and we remain hopeful and are available to continue negotiations to bring a resolution to this strike, which is undoubtedly impacting our employees and those we serve.鈥�
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鈥� READ MORE: Salvation Army not allowed in front of BC Liquor stores as of Christmas 2022
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