Saskatoon Co-op group expresses support for Unifor refinery members

Unifor members at the Co-op refinery in Regina are getting support from a group called the Saskatoon Co-op Members for Fairness (CM4F).

The organization calls itself a grassroots, progressive movement made up of Co-op members and workers who are concerned about what they see as the company’s departure from co-operative values and practices.

In a statement released Tuesday, CM4F called on the Saskatoon Co-operative Association’s board of directors to “exert its influence to resolve the lockout by directing the Co-op Refinery management to get back to the table to negotiate fairly with these workers.”

The group also says the ongoing feud fits an “alarming pattern” of labour strife, which includes a strike in Moose Jaw in 2018 and a strike at Saskatoon Co-op stores that went on for more than five months.

“Profits from the oil refinery are essential to all retail co-ops, and consequently, the lockout has profound effects on the financial sustainability of the Co-op system,” CM4F says.