Metro workers back on job today but shuttered stores won’t reopen right away

Some Metro workers will be back on the job Friday but customers won’t be browsing the aisles of their local stores until next week.

Workers are expected to return to the 27 shuttered stores (full list below) after union members approved a tentative agreement to end their month-long strike in a vote on Thursday.

The company says the locations that were closed won’t be ready to reopen until Tuesday since they are in need of major restocking after being shut down for more than 30 days. Some workers will be back on the job to help with the restocking on Friday.

Metro says all 27 of its stores impacted by the strike that ended yesterday when workers ratified a new agreement won’t be open to shoppers until Tuesday. Some workers may be back at the locations re-stocking today. https://t.co/mgQQZFmElC pic.twitter.com/5qlINSyxXx

— Alex Bloomfield (@Alex_680Radio) September 1, 2023

The workers, represented by Unifor, voted to ratify the deal just two days after Metro was granted a temporary injunction restricting secondary picket lines that blocked fresh product deliveries to its stores.

Unifor spokesman Paul Whyte said in a statement that under the new five-year deal all workers will get an immediate raise of $1.50 an hour. He said full-time and senior part-time workers will get an additional 50-cent raise in January, bringing their total pay increase over the coming months to two-dollars-an-hour.

More than 3,700 workers had been on strike since July 29 after rejecting the first tentative agreement recommended by their bargaining committee.

The following is a list of Metro locations that were closed and will reopen on Sep. 5:

• Brampton – 180 Sandalwood Parkway
• Brantford – 371 St. Paul Ave.
• Etobicoke – 201 Lloyd Manor
• Etobicoke – 1500 Royal York Rd.
• Milton – 1050 Kennedy Circle
• Mississauga – 2225 Erin Mills Parkway
• Mississauga – 6677 Meadowvale Town Centre Circle
• Newmarket – 16640 Yonge St.
• Newmarket – 1111 Davis Dr.
• North York – 3090 Bathurst St.
• North York – 20 Church Ave.
• North York – 1411 Lawrence Ave. West
• North York – 291 York Mills Rd.
• North York – 1050 Don Mills Rd.
• Oakville – 1521 Rebecca St.
• Orangeville – 150 First St.
• Scarborough – 16 William Kitchen Rd.
• Scarborough – 40 Eglinton Square
• Scarborough – 2900 Warden Ave.
• Scarborough – 3221 Eglinton Ave. East
• Toronto – 3003 Danforth Ave.
• Toronto – 2155 St. Clair Ave. West
• Toronto – 100 Lynn Williams St.
• Toronto – 425 Bloor St. West
• Toronto – 2300 Yonge St.
• Toronto – 656 Eglinton Ave. East
• Toronto – 89 Gould St.

With files from CityNews reporter Alex Bloomfield