Unionized workers at Highline Mushrooms in Abbotsford, B.C., have approved their first collective agreement, securing higher wages, support for permanent residency, and other benefits following what the union calls the largest farmworker unionization in Canada, said the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1518.
UFCW 1518 said that 400 workers at Highline Mushrooms joined the union earlier this year, and that 98 per cent of them voted for the contract on Dec. 17-18. The agreement, according to the union, provides total wage increases of 4.55 per cent by June 2025, a 50-cent hourly late-work bonus for many employees, and a $500 signing bonus. It also includes a $2,000 payment toward permanent residency applications and legal costs, recall rights to ensure that temporary foreign workers are offered future contracts based on seniority, and new oversight of worker housing.
“These temporary foreign workers secured a historic first contract that includes life-changing provisions,” said UFCW 1518 President Patrick Johnson. “What’s truly remarkable is that these members come from all corners of the world, speaking multiple languages, and have been united by their shared determination to win the respect and treatment they deserve,” said Johnson.
The ratification coincided with International Migrants Day, which acknowledges the contributions of migrant workers around the world, said the union.
UFCW 1518 said it represents tens of thousands of workers in retail, industrial, professional and healthcare sectors, and that these members aim to improve working conditions in British Columbia.