STRIKERS SHARE LOAD
Solidarity on picket line
Kassandra Roach realized she was likely to spend Christmas Eve on the picket line earlier this month, after talks between her union and Saskatoon Co-op failed to reach a deal to end an ongoing strike.
That became a reality Monday morning, when she and about a dozen colleagues pulled on heavy winter boots, cracked single-use hand warmers and started walking long laps around the co-operative’s Westview grocery store.
“Today’s been really cold. The wind is really bitter,” Roach, who has spent the last decade working for the local retailer, said while taking a break in a spartan but well-heated trailer provided to give picketers some respite from the weather.
“Those days are usually the worst, first thing in the morning when the wind has really picked up. But for the most part by about 8 a.m. or 9 a.m. the sun usually comes out. We keep warm walking. Keep each other busy. We talk a lot.”
Roach is one of around 900 Saskatoon Co-op employees who have spent the last eight weeks on strike after voting against a proposal that would create a lower wage tier for new hires, capping their maximum earnings.
United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1400 members who work full-time earn $400 per week on the picket line.
Roach said she is fortunate to have a supportive partner and parents, but noted that some of her colleagues are not so lucky.
“We’ve had a lot of people fall ill, or they’ve had family tragedies that have happened in the last couple of weeks,” she said.
“We’ve all banded together and we picket extra hours for them, in their name, so they can still get their strike pay.
“We’re trying to spread the holidays,” she added.
As Roach spoke, a steady stream of her colleagues walked in and out of the trailer, some pulling off glasses fogged by the sudden blast of warmth and others speculating idly about the purpose and future of the strike.
No bargaining dates are scheduled, and there is little sign management and union are close to achieving a settlement; the informal consensus among Roach and her colleagues seemed to be that it is likely to continue into the new year.