SAQ employees vote for 6-day strike mandate

Employees of the SAQ, Quebec's government-run liquor board, are one step closer to walking off the job.

Members of the Syndicat des employé(e)s de magasins et de bureaux de la SAQ (SEMB SAQ) union voted 91 per cent in favour of a six-day strike mandate over the weekend. The turnout was 54.6 per cent.

It is unclear when the strike will begin, and the days won't necessarily be taken consecutively. The union and employer will continue negotiations until Wednesday.

"This time, we hope the employer will have the good sense to negotiate reasonably, the ball is in their court," the union's executive said in a news release.

The main sticking points are the new requirement that full-time employees work more weekend hours and the job security of part-time employees.

Union president Katia Lelièvre said the idea that working at the SAQ is a great job to have is a myth as far as part-time employees are concerned.

She said about 70 per cent of employees are part-time and don't have set guaranteed hours. They often work weekends and can be on contracts for years before getting a staff position.

Now the full-time employees are expected to work weekends, as well, she said.

SAQ wants to improve efficiency

SAQ spokesperson Mathieu Gaudreault said the employer wants to reach an agreement that will work for both parties, but the deal must also give the SAQ flexibility when it comes to making schedules.

According to the union, the deal presented by the SAQ represents $22 million in savings on the backs of employees. Last fiscal year, the SAQ made more than $1 billion.

Gaudreault said those results prove that the SAQ is efficient, but now it is trying to "improve that efficiency and adapt to the realities of the retail industry."

The SAQ's approximately 5,500 employees from some 400 branch locations voted on the proposed strike in recent days, but the last ballot box didn't reach the union's Montreal office until Friday evening.

The votes were counted over the weekend and the results were announced publicly just after midnight on Monday.

The union's collective agreement expired May 31, 2017. Negotiations between the two sides began in February of that year.

The union is preparing information pamphlets and instructing employees to hand them out to clients in the coming days.

Stocking up

Customers at the Atwater market SAQ store could be seen stocking up Monday morning, just in case.

It's the same story at Wienstein and Gavino's restaurant on Crescent Street downtown, where operating partner Roger Costa says the strike could be an inconvenience.

"We're going to take all the measures we can by loading up. So that if this goes on for a little while at least we'll have some inventory to be able to serve our guests the best we can," he said.

"Not necessarily having the exact wine they wanted but perhaps one similar."