A complaint of an unfair labor practice against Agricore could soon be settled.
The complaint was filed last year by the Grain Services Union, which alleges the grain company spied on union activities in two separate incidents.
A man was seen videotaping a union-sponsored picnic. In the other incident, an employee of a private security firm planted a tape recorder at a union meeting in Swan River, Man.
GSU general secretary Hugh Wagner said May 10 a tentative settlement has been reached with Agricore regarding the unfair labor practice complaint.
Read Also
Manitoba Parkland research station grapples with dry year
Drought conditions in northwestern Manitoba have forced researchers at the Parkland Crop Diversification Foundation to terminate some projects and reseed others.
He said he hopes the settlement can be finalized by the end of May.
Details of the tentative deal were not revealed.
The GSU filed its complaint with the Canada Industrial Relations Board last fall following the incident at Swan River.
The man who planted the tape recorder at the union meeting was employed by B.A. Evans and
Associates, a private security firm in Winnipeg. The firm had been hired by Agricore to monitor union activities.
When the incident at Swan River came to light, Agricore and B.A. Evans and Associates both said the man planting the tape had overstepped his authority and that his actions had not been sanctioned by the grain company or the security company.
Agricore apologized for any disruption the man’s activities might have caused to the Swan River meeting. However, the company did not apologize for hiring a security firm to monitor union activities.
Last week, Agricore offered little comment on the tentative settlement with the union.
“All I know is it has been settled and it has been settled with an apology,” said spokesperson Diane Wreford.
If the settlement becomes final, the GSU will drop lawsuits it launched last year against Agricore and the security firm.
The lawsuits also were prompted by what Wagner called an invasion of people’s privacy and right to assemble as union members without fear that the opinions they express would get back to their employer.
He said company surveillance of membership meetings could have a “chilling effect” on the willingness of union members to express their views at those gatherings.
