‘Absolute disgrace,’ HBC workers claim denied severance amid liquidation in Ontario

Workers from now-defunct Hudson’s Bay locations across Ontario are rallying against severance denials.

A report by Unifor, a Canada-wide union, revealed that Hudson’s Bay staff represented by the group (some 600 workers) gathered in Toronto and Windsor yesterday to demand owed severance as the company’s liquidation nears completion.

Due to a lack of support, union leaders have called on the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) to acknowledge its current mishandling of practices as it shuts down Canadian operations, resulting in over 8,000 individuals losing their jobs nationwide.

Beyond the struggle with the HBC, Unifor is also urging the feds to use the current situation as an opportunity to review the transparency of workers’ rights in Canada.

“Unifor is calling on HBC to honour its legal responsibilities to workers and urges federal legislators to overhaul Canada’s insolvency laws to put workers first,” Unifor Ontario Regional Director Samia Hashi told HBC members at the Toronto rally.

According to Unifor, workers under the union are owed tens of thousands of dollars in severance and unpaid wages by the HBC.

Those who have put in decades of work with the company, now forced to contend with no severance, also have no choice but to wait until their termination is fully processed to apply for the Wage Earner Protection Program (WEPP) — a limited federal relief program.

“It’s an absolute disgrace that executives are walking away with $3 million in bonuses while our members—some with decades of service—are being denied the severance and benefits they’ve negotiated, earned, and rightfully deserve,” added Sarnia.

As a result, Unifor is urging federal authorities to raise the cap on WEPP payments and broaden eligibility for all impacted HBC workers.

“It’s an injustice to all Canadian workers who are caught in the middle when companies fail and collapse—the laws must be changed to make workers priority one,” Dwayne Gunness, Unifor Local 40 President, said in a statement.

INsauga.com contacted HBC representatives to gain insight into the current status of worker relief amidst the company’s liquidation.

No response has been received at the time of publication.

For more information on Unifor and yesterday’s rallies for HBC workers, visit their official website.