Videotron locks out 214 unionized workers in Gatineau

GATINEAU – As of 5 a.m. Monday morning, 214 unionized employees of Quebecor subsidiary Videotron have been locked out at the company’s location in Gatineau. Videotron announced last Friday in a press release it was serving a lockout notice to Laurentian-area Local SEVL-2815 (Gatineau), a Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) local, after 74% of members voted to reject Videotron’s Oct. 10 offer. The employees’ collective agreement expired on Aug. 31, 2021, and after 18 bargaining sessions with local union representatives and several high-level meetings between Videotron management and CUPE representatives, the two sides have been unable to negotiate a new agreement,...