Striking Molson workers reject offer as picket lines stretch into 11th week

MONTREAL — Hundreds of striking Molson Canada workers have rejected an offer from the beverage company, keeping more than 400 employees on the picket lines and bar owners with less on tap.

Teamsters Canada says the union local last week voted 92.4 per cent against a collective agreement put on the table by the 236-year-old brewery in Montreal.

Teamsters spokeswoman Catherine Cosgrove says concerns over salary remain front and centre amid rampant inflation, on top of pension and work scheduling issues.

Molson Coors spokesman François Lefebvre says the rejected deal marks its “final offer” after more than a week of negotiations following the walkout on March 25, and that strikers are holding bars “hostage” as managers try to deliver beer themselves.

Renaud Poulin, head of the Quebec bar owners’ association, says numerous pubs in more far-flung parts of the province are missing suds due to the 73-day strike.

Quebec’s labour tribunal issued an interim order last month requiring Molson Canada to stop employing replacement workers until a union complaint can be heard by the quasi-judicial body.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2022.

The Canadian Press