Members of the Olimel Valley-Junction-CSN trade union 57% rejected the initial agreement reached with their employer overnight from Friday to Saturday.
Via Voice Communications, Martin Morris, president of STOVJ-CSN, noted Tuesday evening that workers had decided to reject the agreement in principle, “considering it unsatisfactory.”
“So we will inform the employer and we will return to the negotiating table, we are still in the presence of the conciliator,” Martin Morris added.
The workers had called a general strike on 28 April. Several conciliation sessions were necessary before this agreement was reached, which was eventually rejected. The disputed issues were wages, hours of work, and the duration of the collective agreement.
Pig farmers in Quebec breathed a sigh of relief last Saturday when an agreement was reached in principle, as they fear having to euthanize the animals, due to the lack of space in their buildings. This route has so far been avoided.
Approximately 140,000 pigs are waiting to be slaughtered, while the usual average is between 5,000 and 10,000.
With this agreement, it gives producers hope that the number will drop each week. […] At some point, we saw euthanasia become a possibility because the product is cumbersome and tiring. That’s why we’ve asked all parties to come to an agreement because it can’t go on like this,” Pork Breeders president David Duvall commented to the Canadian press on Saturday.
In recent weeks, the animals have been diverted out of Quebec and a massive hog sale has been carried out to make space in the livestock buildings.
Quebec has more than 2,700 pig farms.