The Alberta Labour Relations Board held two separate hearings this week on disputes at Lakeside Packers in Brooks, where a strike that began Oct. 12 continues.
On Nov. 1, the board began four days of hearings regarding misconduct on the packing plant picket line on Oct. 13.
“There are complaints from both sides about dispute-related misconduct allegations around stuff that happened on picket lines on Oct. 13,” said Nancy McDermid, manager of settlement for the labour relations board.
A scuffle broke out on the evening of the second day of the strike when pickets were blocking the entrance. Three workers were sent to hospital.
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The panel is made up of either the labour board chair or vice-chair, as well as an equal number of board members representing labour and management in the province.
On Nov. 3, the labour board will hear a second request from the company to allow it to bypass the union and hold a vote on its proposed contract. Earlier the labour board rejected the vote because of a concern with a no-strike, no-lockout clause. The board will hear concerns from both sides about the proposal vote application, said McDermid.
Tom Hesse, spokesperson for the United Food and Commercial Workers local 401, said the union doesn’t believe the proposal vote should go ahead because it didn’t contain offers that were placed on the table during bargaining over the past year.
“We’ve never opposed the vote as long as it was lawful. The problem with the current position is we think some of the things they’ve proposed are unlawful or are bargaining in bad faith.
“We don’t know how the board can force a vote on an unlawful offer,” said Hesse.
Gary Mickelson, manager of communications with Tyson Foods, the plant’s owner, said it also wants to eliminate the union’s ability to delay each vehicle crossing the picket line by three minutes. An earlier labour board ruling reduced the amount of time pickets were allowed to delay cars to a maximum of three minutes. That’s down from an earlier maximum of five minute for each car and nine minutes per bus.
“We think we have a right to operate and our team members have a right to do their job and these types of delays impede those rights. We may be looking at additional legal remedy in regards to this three minute rule,” said Mickelson.
Hesse said until the meat packing industry is deemed an essential service in Alberta, workers have the right to picket.
Last week, Tyson Foods also threatened to take the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and its workers to court for refusing to cross picket lines.
The 30 inspectors and veterinarians, who work at the plant and must be present before the plant can operate, said it wasn’t safe to cross the picket line and wanted a safety assessment.
On Oct. 27, a Calgary Court of Queen’s Bench judge ordered striking workers to clear the way for the federal inspectors without delay.
Scott Acker, regional director for CFIA in southern Alberta, said a combination of the Queen’s Bench ruling allowing inspectors’ vehicles to enter the plant unimpeded, and an inspection by a Labour Canada safety officer who evaluated the working conditions, was enough to ensure the inspectors would be safe.
The packing plant, which can slaughter and process 4,700 animals each day, operated three days last week.
Mickelson said more than 1,100 people showed up for work and the company ran the equivalent of almost a full shift of production.
