GOLICO members will have a little more money in their pockets thanks to a recent MGEU grievance win.
In 2017, four years after the merger of the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission (MLCC) and Manitoba Lotteries Corporation (MLC) and the implementation of a new payroll system, the Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Corporation (MBLL) began interpreting the GOLICO collective agreement differently when it came to paying shift premiums.
The employer stopped paying for full hours on shift premiums, even though, prior to the merger, the practice to do so had been in place since the 1980’s.
This meant that historically if a member worked into the next hour on an evening or weekend shift, they were paid the premium on that full hour, not just to the minute of time worked in that hour.
The MGEU immediately challenged the change in pay practices, but the employer disagreed on the meaning of the language in the agreement “per hour or portion thereof per day” and a grievance was filed that eventually made its way in front of an arbitrator.
The arbitrator determined that while the wording may seem ambiguous, past practice over 15 collective agreements meant that the change in pay practice was a violation of the agreement. For this reason, the arbitrator awarded affected employees back pay, while forcing the employer to go back to paying premiums for full hours worked on any evening or weekend shift.
“We are extremely pleased that the arbitrator recognized the importance of past practice and our members will get back pay,” said MGEU President Michelle Gawronsky. “There’s no way the meaning of the wording contemplated that future payroll systems could calculate wages to the minute. Our members don’t deserve this kind of concessionary treatment by their employer.”
MBLL employees working in Supply Chain and Distribution centre jobs are the GOLICO members who are most impacted by this and are expected to see their retroactive payment automatically along with their regular bi-weekly pay in the near future.
If affected members have any questions, they’re encouraged to contact the MGEU Member Resource Centre.