On Saturday, May 9th, laid-off workers at Toronto-based produce delivery service Mama Earth led a rally to protest union busting in their former workplace.
The action comes on the heels of Mama Earth CEO Ran Goel’s announcement of the firing of 102 unionized workers, along with the business’ impending move from East York in Toronto to Mississauga.
Roughly thirty workers and community supporters attended a short rally with speeches at a park in East York (organized with the help of Naujawan Support Network and Socialist Project), followed by a march and picket outside the Toronto warehouse, where they blocked deliveries and handed out leaflets explaining the situation.
Mass layoffs of unionized workers
In March, Goel informed employees at Mama Earth that the 102 unionized workers at its Waterman Ave warehouse would be laid off after eight weeks had passed. The non-unionized employees at the company, however, would be staying on board. He also informed them that the Toronto warehouse where Mama Earth operates would be shutting down, and the warehouse would be moving to Mississauga.
Mass layoffs of unionized workers will always draw scrutiny, but the alarm was raised further by the warehouse’s change in location. The collective agreement between Mama Earth and the union, UFCW 10006A, stipulates that the collective agreement would still apply within Toronto’s borders. However, the agreement has no language outlining what happens if the business moves outside of Toronto. The new location in Mississauga sits just beyond the city limits and is therefore exempt from the collective agreement.
Unionized workers were further insulted by the treatment they received after the firings. Workers allege that Mama Earth offered severance payments that only took into account time working at Mama Earth since the company was acquired by parent company Fresh City Foods four years ago in 2022. Time worked at Mama Earth prior to the acquisition is not included in the calculation of severance amounts, severely cutting into what the workers are owed.
Though Goel denies an anti-union motivation for these moves, his rhetoric is undermined by the fact that Mama Earth has since posted job listings looking to fill many of the roles previously filled by unionized workers. Not only are they trying to rehire for the same jobs, but they are also shifting to a third-party gig economy system to fill their need for delivery drivers, meaning that their produce could be delivered in a regular car’s trunk rather than in a temperature-controlled van. As workers were quick to point out at Saturday’s rally, rehiring for the same jobs that were terminated and shifting to third-party services shows that those positions are not expendable, and keeping the non-union workers on board shows that Mama Earth is capable of retaining workers during the move — the only conceivable reason to fire the unionized workers is to bust the union.
“What’s disgusting? Union busting!”
Standing outside the Mama Earth warehouse in East York with signs and leaflets, workers and supporters led chants, the most popular being the classic: “What’s disgusting? Union busting!”
Between picketing and leafleting, the workers reiterated their demands: fair severance pay, union recognition at the new workplace in Mississauga, the right of first refusal for the jobs the company is trying to fill (at the same wages and seniority levels as before), continuation of health insurance coverage for six months after the Toronto facility closes, and a one-time cost-of-living bonus.
At the picket line, the protesters were waiting for the rest of the workers to go on lunch hour so they could eat samosas together, provided by NSN. However, the workers inside were reportedly barred from going outside by management during their break, adding insult to injury to the conditions they are currently putting up with.
Ian Goff, a Mama Earth worker and de facto spokesman for his fellow employees, claims that it used to be a great workplace, but the work environment slowly deteriorated, with the company deciding to install driver-facing cameras on the trucks’ dashboards instead of fixing issues with their vehicles’ maintenance, such as faulty car doors and broken mirrors.
Tuesday, May 12th, is the last day Mama Earth Workers are slated to work at the Waterman Ave location, but they plan on continuing to fight for their rights regardless of where the warehouse is located.
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