The below letter was sent today to Ontario’s Minister of Finance by Craig McInnes, President, Teamsters Ontario Joint Council 52.
Dear Mr. Peter Bethlenfalvy,
As you know, some 9,000 LCBO workers represented by OPSEU walked off the job last Friday after negotiations for a new collective agreement fell apart. In response, the LCBO then shuttered its more than 650 stores across the province for at least two weeks.
Upon learning of the letter you sent to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, thanking them for supporting the government’s vision of “an expanded alcohol marketplace” to prioritize “convenience and choice” to consumers, I felt compelled to write to you and voice my concerns.
In your letter you refer to the LCBO as a service with a “world-class retailing footprint that provides an exceptional customer experience.” How do you think they got there? The LCBO has this world-class footprint because of the hardworking people that work there. These are the same people that all Ontarians rely on to keep our streets safe through the hours of training they receive to ensure SMART service to consumers. The level of competition that privatizing alcohol sales will cause, will only result in decreased safety for all Ontarians. Just when the Ontario Provincial Police has voiced their significant concerns over the increase of impaired driving occurrences in our province, now our government decides that “choice and convenience” of alcohol needs to be the priority?
This same “world-class footprint” currently generates a roughly $2.5 billion annual revenue dividend for the province, a substantial portion of which is spent on key public services like health care and education. LCBO figures estimate the province is facing a net revenue loss of $150 to $200 million per year as a result of the changes. That does not include the $225 million the government will pay to multinational brewing companies to prematurely end an agreement limiting where, and in what quantities, beer and other malt beverages can be sold in Ontario.
It’s difficult not to conclude that the government has only found another way to make their CEO friends rich, particularly after the greenbelt fiasco.
As one of the largest labour unions of our country, we remain steadfast in our fight for workers’ rights. And we stand with our Brothers and Sisters represented by OPSEU through this fight to prioritize job stability, public safety, and funding for public services like health care, education and infrastructure, over “choice and convenience”. Because not only are jobs at stake, but with the threat to our education and health care systems, so is the Ontario way of life.
Regards,
Craig McInnes
President, Teamsters Ontario Joint Council 52
