On October 31, The Toronto Star published a story detailing a successful union drive at H&M in Square One, a large shopping center in Mississauga. The process began in July, when Amy Tran, a member of the United Food and Commercial Union (UFCW), approached Sabrina Butt. Was she interested in a union, Tran inquired? Butt, an H&M employee since 2008, took time to gauge how receptive her full- and part-time colleagues were to this proposition.
By mid-August, a union membership drive was in full swing. Union cards were signed and information was distributed. Reasons for organizing collectively varied from better training and scheduling, posting job opportunities internally first, clearly defined, fair wages (it was not unheard of for new hires to make more than colleagues with more seniority), and the hope that employees’ suggestions would be implemented.
On October 6th, the labour board certification vote took place to ratify, or approve, Square One H&M’s decision to join the United Food and Commercial Workers’ union. Workers voted in favour of unionization, 25-13, a clear ‘yes’ mandate.
