Staff want Park Royal-style settlement
Cathryn Atkinson
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The disgruntled employees of Extra Foods are awaiting a final response from Westfair Foods to their demands to rescind what the union is calling rollbacks proposed in a new contract.
Fred Avis, the store's United Food Commercial Workers Union representative, said that they have asked management to give them a clear answer by noon on Friday (Oct. 27), or they will "reviewing their options." The union had already passed a 72-hour strike notice motion supported by 95 per cent of their members, which if called Friday, could mean picket lines at the store as early as Monday.
However, Avis said this is not the union's only "job action" option and hoped the situation wouldn't come to a walk out. "With the closure of IGA [last weekend], we want the store to stay open because we don't want to hurt customers in this," he said. "But we have bent over backwards and given them every chance to make it right."
Avis said that the union hoped Westfair would give them the same wage and settlement conditions enjoyed by employees at their sister store in the Park Royal shopping centre. He also cited salary levels at Safeway as examples of staff "being treated fairly."
Union members met Tuesday evening (Oct. 24) to hammer out their final demands, handing them to management on Wednesday (Oct. 25), but as went to press they had not received a response, or indicate when they would respond. "The company has still not given us a date," said Avery. "We don't expect anything until high noon, maybe after, just like a western."
Extra Foods store manager Kerry Patterson said in-house management did not know the status of negotiations. "It's pretty much down to head office."
Extra Foods' owner-operator Craig Woida was unavailable for comment at press time.
