Empire, parent company of Sobeys, announced strong third quarter financial results this week as the company prepares to pay out about $35 million in buyouts for its Safeway employees. Sobeys owns 50 Safeway stores in British Columbia. In the past year, it has closed another 10 Safeway locations that it plans to convert to FreshCo, the company’s discount banner. “Clearly Sobeys was ready to pay significant money to reduce ...read more 

The Save-On-Foods in Merritt was closed due to a refrigeration leak early this morning. There were reports of a layer of fog in the store and fire crews attended the scene as members were evacuated and sent home until further notice. “I spoke with the shop steward today, and the union has been in contact with our Health & Safety Committee in the store,“ said Secretary-Treasurer Patrick Johnson.  “We’ve ...read more 

UFCW 1518 members working at Safeway will now qualify for MSP, extended health benefits and dental after six months of employment! Trustees on the UFCW Health and Welfare Trust met last October and passed a motion to reduce the eligibility timeline for the Grid B benefit plan, subject to funding. After review, it was determined that there is sufficient funding to reduce the qualification period from 12 to six months. ...read more 

The BC NDP budget announced this week contains important gains for working families and will make life more affordable for everyone living in the province. Poverty reduction and climate action are two new areas of investment, with continued social spending on child care, housing and public infrastructure, as well as health care and the opioid crisis. Key for working families is a the BC Child Opportunity Benefit for children ...read more 

UFCW 1518 is applauding a decision by the BC NDP to bring privately-run home support services back into the government fold, a change that will improve quality of care for British Columbians and increase job security for community health workers. “As one of the first unions to organize home support workers, we understand very clearly the challenges our members face in providing top notch care to some of the ...read more