LCBO strike over after company, union settle last-minute dispute to finalize tentative deal

Ontario drinkers can finally pop the bubbly.
LCBO stores will reopen Tuesday morning — 18 days after workers walked off the job, triggering the first strike in the crown agency’s history.
On Saturday, the LCBO and the union representing 10,000 of its workers announced they had reached a tentative agreement, with both sides signing off on a return-to-work protocol that sees employees back on the job on Monday. 
A tentative deal to end the two-week strike between the LCBO and the Ontario Public Sector Employees Union (OPSEU) had been put on hold Friday night after a last-minute dispute over back-to-work protocols.
Hours after announcing a tentative agreement Friday afternoon, the LCBO threatened to file an unfair-labour-practice charge against OPSEU.
The company claimed the union “introduced significant new monetary demands that should have been dealt with at the bargaining table.” In response, the union said the LCBO had yet to respond to its back-to-work proposal.
By Saturday morning, the dispute was resolved. According to the union, a vote to ratify the agreement will take place on the weekend.
“We look forward to welcoming our 10,000 unionized employees back to work on Monday and opening our stores to shoppers on Tuesday,” the LCBO said in a statement.
OPSEU called the tentative deal “a win for workers and Ontarians” in a statement issued Saturday saying the agreement will lead to more permanent jobs with benefits and guaranteed hours for its workers. The union said it also protects the public revenues generated by the LCBO.
In its statement, the LCBO said the return-to-work protocol “does not include any new monetary items” and focuses on “returning workers safely.” The company said the tentative agreement remains, bringing an end to the strike, which began July 5.
The tentative deal, among other things, gains pay raises of eight per cent over three years for LCBO workers and guarantees that 1,000 casual employees will get permanent part time employment. It also provides better access to benefits for some casual part-time employees and guarantees “market expansion” will not trigger the closure of retail stores for the term of the collective agreement.
The tentative agreement does not impact the province’s move to allow convenience, grocery and big-box stores to sell ready-to-drink cocktails.
It also lays out letters of agreement that include capping the number of LCBO convenience stores at 400. A non-binding, joint committee of union and management employees will “work to determine the best implementation of the marketplace plans,” according to the terms of the tentative deal.
Provincial Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy confirmed on Saturday in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that the sign-off on a return-to-work proposal by the LCBO and OPSEU brought the job action to an end.
“This is a good deal for workers and the people of Ontario,” Bethlenfalvy said.
OPSEU president JP Hornick told the Star in a Saturday interview that LCBO employees have until 3 p.m. Sunday to vote on the tentative agreement. 
“I’m proud of the solidarity that these workers built in the months leading up to this job action and the education that they did with Ontarians about why the LCBO is important,” Hornick said, noting the tentative agreement puts a cap on agency stores and has protections “to ensure that all 680 of the current LCBO locations will remain open.”
Hornick said the union was caught off guard by the LCBO’s reaction to OPSEU’s initial return-to-work protocol, calling it a “template” of what’s typically laid out to safely get workers back on the job following a strike, including processes for reopening stores, reissuing keys and computers and cleaning up picket lines. Requesting compensation for striking employees can be included in return-to-work protocols, Hornick said. 
After the LCBO and the union got back to the bargaining table Friday night, Hornick said the dispute was “cleared up through what normally happens, which is discussion and exchange of proposals.
“It was a completely unnecessary move by the employer, but now it’s resolved and we’re back on track.”    
The LCBO did not provide answers to the Star’s questions regarding the dispute over the return-to-work protocol by deadline.
Kelly Higginson, CEO of Restaurants Canada, told the Star on Saturday that the organization remains thankful a tentative deal has been reached, with “an extra sense of relief today that the latest situation was resolved quickly.”
With files from Kris Rushowy and Josh Rubin.