Strike workers make little progress at Loblaw HQ

Striking Loblaw workers arrived at company headquarters yesterday in an attempt to kick-start negotiations.

Beginning June 15, 40 staff members trekked 600 kilometres from Northern Quebec to Brampton, Ont.  The group walked about 60 kilometres each day in groups of two or three.

READ: Striking Loblaw workers to protest at company HQ

Tensions between the union and Loblaw began in Aug. 2012, when 190 employees at a Maxi store in Rouyn-Noranda were locked out. A Loblaw supermarket in Rouyn closed in June 2013, and employees at a Provigo store in Temiscaming were locked out in Dec. 2012.

"We have tabled our final offer in all three cases, including competitive increases consistent with dozens of other collective agreements we’ve recently concluded in the province of Québec and consistent with the agreements in the Québec market at large," wrote a Quebec spokesperson for Loblaw in an email. "We do not expect any talks to take place upon their arrival in Brampton."

READ: Loblaw, union set to resume talks after strike and lockouts

According to the Montreal Gazette, employees were not able to talk to any Loblaw official when they arrived on Wednesday and picketed the company headquarters.

Most of the 20 employees drove home later that day, while four stayed back with the intention to picket the Brampton head office for the next few weeks.