[LabComm] Lottery workers win with union certification

[Miotto, Anita]

Friday, October 17, 2003

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Lottery workers win with union certification

 

VANCOUVER - Many British Columbians gamble on lottery tickets in a bid
to increase their income. You only have to wait a week to see if you're
a winner.  Workers at the B.C. Lottery Corporation's product
distribution warehouse in Richmond package and distribute these tickets
across the province. But these workers were forced to wait nearly three
years to see if they'd won the right to join a union and negotiate
better wages. 

 

After lengthy delays caused by legal challenges from the B.C. Lottery
Corporation,

the B.C. Labour Relations Board has confirmed that a majority of the
approximately

20 workers at the Richmond warehouse have voted in favour of
representation by the

B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union. 

 

"This has been a David versus Goliath story. This small group of workers
hung on for three long years while one of the wealthiest employers in
this province tried every way possible to obstruct their organizing,"
said George Heyman, BCGEU president. He noted that the B.C. Lottery
Corporation posted $670-million in profits this past year alone. 

 

"Instead of wasting tens of thousands of dollars of taxpayers' money on
endless litigation - this public corporation could have saved money by
doing the right thing and recognizing the rights of these workers
immediately," Heyman said. 

 

"Winning the right to bargain job security, wages, and benefits through
a collective agreement is a real victory for these workers," Heyman
said. "They knew they had workplace rights that needed to be respected,
and they knew they needed the support of a strong union to ensure that
happened. We welcome them to the BCGEU.

 

"We look forward to the employer respecting the workers' decision under
the Labour Code, meeting with us and negotiating a collective agreement
without further delay."

 

-30-

 

Media, please contact Teresa Marshall, BCGEU communications (604)
291-9611 

 

opeiu 378

 

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://bcfed.net/pipermail/labcomm/attachments/20031017/861f1c79/attachment.html>