SHOPPING – Hudson’s Bay store union employees in Kamloops go on strike

Workers at the Hudson’s Bay Company department store at Aberdeen Mall in Kamloops are on strike and a sign on the door says the store is closed.

The strike by members of United Steelworkers Local 1-417 began at 9:30 a.m. today (Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023).

“Not only has Hudson’s Bay refused to pay a reasonable wage increase, it also continues to have concessionary items it wants to carve out of our 30-year-old collective agreement,” union staff rep Steve Ball said in a news release.

The Bay and union met with a B.C. Labour Relations Board mediator Dec. 5 but failed to reach an agreement. According to the USW, the Bay “chose not to move” on its wage proposal of one percent for each year of the contract.

USW Local 1-417 financial secretary Jordan Lawrence said the union wants to send a message to the company during the Christmas season. “Our members will not put up with these bullying tactics from the company any longer.”

He said pickets will be restricted to HBC store entrances and will avoid main mall entrances.

“We encourage customers to shop at the mall but respectfully ask that they honour our legal picket line and find their gifts elsewhere,” he added.

That may be academic, since a notice posted on one of the outlet’s doors states, “This store is temporarily closed. We hope to return to serving our customers as soon as possible, and we apologize for any inconvenience this causes.” A note added to the top of the notice, apparently by the union or a union member, says. “Due to Upper Management’s Refusal to pay a Living Wage.”

A photo of the notice was posted on the union’s Facebook page a couple of hours after it issued the news release on strike action.

The union, which has represented workers at the store since 1993, issued 72-hour strike notice Dec. 6.

A company spokesperson said, “We regret the disruption in our Kamloops store and hope to return to serving our customers as soon as possible. We remain committed to the bargaining process and look forward to reaching a resolution.”