What the Union is Telling Us
Information that the union has put out for us
Rumours of a Strike Vote
The Teamsters are now carrying out more DESPERATE measures since applying for a mediator BEFORE all the meetings were complete and final vote taken to ratify the 1st contract. Again, creating an US vs THEM narrative, they are blaming our employer as Day 1 of talks broke down with the mediator.
The Teamsters, and the Hennessy family are feeling cornered, we want THEM gone and they stand to lose a lot of money if that happens!
They couldn’t help themselves but to mention at the meeting that if there was a YES vote to the contract we would start paying our $100 dues starting October (for absolutely f’ing NOTHING). They don’t want to spend more time bargaining for us, because they are in this for their best interests only of collecting our hard earned money.
They will probably do one of two things.
1) Get the Board to force an agreement on us. OR
2) Call for a strike vote.
You read that right, a STRIKE VOTE!
At the Delta meeting the Teamsters promised, they swore up and down that we didn’t have to worry about striking and that there would be NO strikes, or any disruptions to our customers.
As a matter of fact, they wanted to move on from the topic of strikes!! They said, “Can we stop talking about strikes now?” And here we are only a couple weeks later, they’re looking to take a strike vote? Where is their INTEGRITY???
Over the last few days there have been numerous reports circulating that the Teamsters are going to call a surprise Strike Vote!! If they do they want it to be with NO notice to us, they don’t want us near that ballot box voting NO. If you don’t want to strike or to cross a picket line to get to work, watch for the Strike vote, go and vote NO, and sign a 33A, if you haven’t already.
We ALL need to get to that strike vote with another NO vote to strike action. If indeed they are in a panic, and call a strike vote, it will be at a very inconvenient time and in a very inconvenient location. They want to make it impossible for the majority of the bargain unit get out and vote “No”.
How can people trust this Union, or the people on the bargaining committee that don’t even have the integrity with their Union, as it would appear they are leaking out inside information yet again?
First, it was the main details of our initial contract even before it was presented to us at the meeting.
Secondly, it appears details have been prematurely released for a planned surprise strike vote after mediation talks broke down.
- Pay Union dues.
- No profit sharing.
- No pension.
- Same benefits.
- Status quo GI increases.
- A losing effort for a contract that they wanted us to vote YES to.
- And now further indication of them comprising all integrity yet again.
And now for their own benefit, just to flex their muscles, if in fact they’re talking about a STRIKE vote, we haven’t even ratified our very first contract yet!
Meanwhile, are there any guarantees that the mediated contract will be better than the first one that we just said NO to? Ask Canada Post workers who were handed a worse agreement than the previous one.
It would seem that at this point the only thing the Teamsters are bargaining for is their dues.
How’s that Union workin’ out for you?
Time to take our power back and decertify from this Teamster’s Dumpster Fire.
Teamsters Update - September 29th
So, we all got that last Teamsters email blast about the Labour Board appointing a mediator. It’s very clear that the Teamsters will never deliver what they promised, and they want us to believe that this is because Gordons is bargaining in bad faith, when it’s THEM who are bargaining in bad faith. Goodness knows, they never take the blame, but they always want to take the credit.
And, while we are talking about bad faith, the Teamsters are intimidating people at the gate to try to cancel their Form 33A.
They claim that you have been “misled”, but we have been very straight forward, we want the Teamsters gone, they should never have been certified. We know people have been intimidated at the gate because several signers have signed again to keep their Form 33A more recent than the union’s form.
If you have been bullied into signing one of the Teamsters forms, just go to notmyunion.com and sign a 33A again.
Meanwhile, the Teamsters message has not changed. They will never tire of trying to find issues to wedge/drive between GFS and all of us who work there.
The Teamsters NEEDS us to distrust management and the Gordons Family; they NEED us fighting and they will do anything to make it that way.
We at NotMyUnion are so tired of this US vs THEM narrative that the Teamsters are relentlessly pushing. If you want to distrust someone, distrust the organization Teamsters that says, they are there to support you. They are the ones who abandoned negotiations after FAILING to push for a pension, profit sharing, and a better wage package. They recommended that we all vote YES to accept that contract. But we showed them that we are smarter than them and all they want is our dues money in their pockets!!!
We at NotMyUnion, are making one recommendation only… That we all sign a 33A form and RID of this Union we never wanted in the first place!! Let’s move forward from this so we can actually focus on what really matters…. our Customers and serving them!
Our job security is dependent on our loyal customers.
NOT TEAMSTERS!!
Tentative Agreement - So, What Happened?
The Result poll(s) are shown below:
- Number of ballots Issued – 303
- Number of ballots returned – 303
- In favour (Yes to the agreement) – 78 (25.8% YES)
- Against (No to the agreement) – 225 (74.2% NO)
What it means: We told the union, in very strong terms, that they failed us, they did not deliver on the promises they made when we certified them as our bargaining agent. Now, let’s tell them we want them to decertify them.
Teamsters Update - Sept 11th - Will they Let Us See The Agreement Before We Vote?
Dear GFS Teamsters,
in an historic first in North America, the Teamsters Union has reached a tentative collective agreement with Gordon Food Service Canada Limited. This achievement could not have been possible without the support and dedication of you – our members – and the solidarity of our union Bargaining Committee
What is a Tentative Agreement?
A tentative agreement is a proposed contract reached between your Union Negotiating Committee and the Employer. It is not final until it has been presented to the membership and voted on. The power to accept or reject rests solely with you, the members
Union recommends the contract
Your Union secured crucial contract items in this round of bargaining and because of these gains the union is recommending that members vote in favour of this agreement. The full content will be presented at the ratification meetings.
Our bargaining committee members will be present at those meetings. However, the legal responsibility to provide members with the agreements details lies with the Union Representatives. For this reason, Bargaining Committee members will not be sharing details before hand. This ensures that all members receive the same accurate information at the same time in a structured and transparent manner.
Next steps
The union will be holding ratification meetings where we will review the contents of your first collective agreement. These meetings will give you the opportunity to ask questions and make an informed decision.
What is Ratification?
Ratification is a democratic process where members vote to accept or reject the tentative agreement. If ratified, the contract becomes legally binding and enforceable.
Finalizing meeting logistics
In the coming days the union will provide more details on the ratification meeting schedule. Teamsters local 31 represents GFS employees and Delta, Abbotsford, Squamish, Sunshine Coast, Penticton, West Kelowna, Kelowna, Vernon, and Kamloops. Given the numbers of locations, we are finalizing logistics to ensure all members can attend.
Once again thank you to our members for your support, and congratulations to our Union Bargaining Committee – Mike Ruhland, Robert Cole, Richard Arpin, Brendan Aven, Neel Sharma, and Tyler Ross – for securing this historic first contract with GFS.
On behalf of President Stan Hennessy and the entire Teamsters local 31 leadership-well done. In solidarity,
Ben Hennessy
Business Agent & Union Negotiator
Teamsters Local Union Number 31.
The Latest Fifteen Page Teamsters Newsletter is not Accurate!
- It’s insulting when they call this a con job. We have dozens and dozens of supporters who do not want the Teamsters!
- How is bargaining at 98% complete when wages are not even agreed-upon yet?
- They also still didn’t say how much strike pay is? If what we said is “laughable” how much is it, why won’t they tell us?
- We are bigger in Canada than Sysco! Stop comparing us to the USA all the time.
- The company gave us 6.5% wage increase this year, not the Teamsters. GFS didn’t want us to go with no increase in the process, the company did not have to do this!
Ben Hennessy Email August 27th - Teamsters Say It's All About Power
Teamsters Update Aug 13th - So Informative, Must be Going Real Well
This week, the Union and the Employer continued contract talks, focusing on the monetary aspects of negotiations. We are scheduled to meet again on September 10 and 11, and are awaiting confirmation on adding an additional bargaining day in the first week of September.
We will share another update as soon as we have more information.
They’re waiting a month to start bargaining again.
Teamsters Update Aug 8th - They Didn't Even Know About Our P4P Bonuses Until Now
We put a line through anything that doesn’t tell us anything useful
It’s been a busy two weeks, and your Union Bargaining Committee has got a huge amount of work done.
Contact Negotiations
The Union and Employer met for four additional bargaining sessions on July 28, 29, August 6, and 7, focusing heavily on monetary proposals. The Union presented a counterproposal at the end of Thursday’s session. We will meet again this Monday and Tuesday, with the Employer presenting their counteroffer first thing Monday morning.
Meetings with GFS Management
Vice-President Richelle Akimow
On Thursday morning, GFS Regional Vice-President Richelle Akimow visited our Union Hall with the Employer’s Bargaining Committee. She shared updates on the company’s financials, operations, and the overall health of the restaurant sector. We appreciate her time and insight.
Incentive Plan (P4P) Briefing
On Friday, August 1, the Company held a presentation and Q&A with the Union at the Teamsters 2nd Floor Boardroom on Annacis Island regarding the Incentive Plan (P4P). This was an additional day not related to collective bargaining, but rather a tutorial on how the Incentive Plan system works.
The reason why it was important to hold this meeting was for the Union to gain a stronger understanding of how the Incentive Plan works. The Incentive Plan represents a major part of your overall wage package, making this information important for reaching a collective agreement.
On behalf of the Union Bargaining Committee, we thank Ryan Ward, Kim Farquhar, Victor Morales, Bogdon, Ben Klassen, and Scott Featherstone for sharing data on the Incentive Plan and answering all of our questions.
More Bargaining Dates Starting on Monday
We return to the bargaining table Monday and Tuesday. We are in the final stages of negotiations, and with commitment from both sides, a contract is close to being finalized. Your Bargaining Committee will push hard to get this done and will work tirelessly to achieve the best possible agreement for our members..
Once again, a special thanks to Mike Ruhland, Robert Cole, Richard Arpin, Brendon Aven, Neel Sharma, and Tyler Ross for their hard work and dedication throughout these contract negotiations.
Thank you, GFS members, for your continued support and patience
All this update says is that they’re pushing hard to get an agreement signed. They are concerned that we will have a decertification vote before then and they wont be able to collect any of our money in dues and signing fees. They would happily sign a weak deal just to make sure they get our dues before we apply to decertify.
Teamsters Update July 25th - They Don't Even Have a Tenative Agreement
We put a line through anything that doesn’t tell us anything useful
We hope this message finds you well and if it doesn’t, remember… it’s Friday, and the weekend is about to begin, and with any luck, there’s a cold beer and a hot BBQ waiting for you!
As we roll into the weekend, your Bargaining Committee wanted to take a moment to update you on where things stand at the bargaining table. We’ve come a long way since the early days of negotiations. From locking in key contract structure around scheduling, health and safety, and job security, your Union Bargaining Committee has been working hard to make sure your voices are heard and respected.
On July 16, we presented our monetary proposals to the Employer.
We’re scheduled to meet again on Monday, July 28 and Wednesday, July 30 at the Union Hall, where we expect a full response to those proposals. This is the point in bargaining where things tend to move quicker—we’re into the nitty gritty now. Our goal is to lock down a full tentative agreement that we can bring to you for a vote.
We’ve informed the Employer that we are entering the final phase of bargaining and are ready to work late into the evenings to get this deal across the finish line.
There’s still work to do, but we are proud of the progress we’ve made and even prouder to stand united with all of you in building a stronger, fairer, and union-represented workplace. Your continued support and solidarity have been instrumental in getting us to this point, and they will help push us through to a final agreement.
We’ll keep you updated as soon as we have more to share.
This update uses six paragraphs to tell us that they’re going to bargain some more and hopefully get a “tentative” agreement for us to vote on. Remember that this Agreement is between Teamsters and GFS, our names are nowhere on it and we have no say until they ask us to vote on it.
Teamsters Update Jul 14th - Negotiations are Going Slowly
We’ve put a strike through anything that doesn’t tell us anything useful
We’ve reached a major stage in collective bargaining. The Union will be presenting it’s monetary proposals at the bargaining table this Tuesday, with negotiations continuing through Wednesday.
It has taken time to get to this point because we’ve worked hard to get as much as possible done right the first time. We want to ensure this contract delivers real improvements for everyone.
There are still a few outstanding language items that the Company is scheduled to respond to tomorrow morning before we move fully into the monetary phase of bargaining in the afternoon.
We truly appreciate your support, solidarity, and patience throughout this process. We’re almost there. Let’s keep standing strong together.
All this update really says is that they are negotiating with management and making excuses for the negotiations taking so long
When the union came in, it was called Certification and getting rid of the union is called Decertification.
The union will tell you, or you may have heard that if you try to decertify the union, you will lose your job, or the union will punish you. If they tell you that, they are trying to scare you and they are breaking a British Columbia Labour Law and their website explains it very well. BC Labour Board website.
We have the spokesperson chosen and will file the Form 33 Application as soon as we have enough support. Each person that wants to get rid of the union and get back to what we had must sign a BCLRB Form 33A. After you have filled it out, it will email you a copy and NotMyUnion a copy. NotMyUnion must confirm receipt of this Form. After this is all done you will receive a Final copy. This is the most secure and confidential way as it ensures that neither the union or employer will know if you have signed your Form 33A to support a decertification vote in the near future.