Unionized employees of the Yorkton Co-op walked out of work for a one-day study session on May 18 in pursuit of higher wages.
The Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) which represents the cooperative's employees considered the job action optional for members, but most retail employees in Yorkton took part. The city's Co-op Food Centre was forced to close on Wednesday.
"The attendance was overwhelming-more than we probably expected," said RWDSU contact Bernie Olynick.
The retailer broke with precedent by declining to lock out participating employees the following day, and so the grocery store was open again on Thursday.
Both sides insist the job action taken on Wednesday was not a strike.
The dispute between the union and the cooperative is largely about money. The co-op has proposed a starting wage of $0.75/hr above minimum wage and a scale of $10.00 to $14.66 per hour for top-rated employees with more than four years of experience.
The union has made no counteroffer to the co-op's last two offers, but argues that the retailer "can well afford to do much better." The union says that the proposed wages are well below those offered at competing supermarkets in the city.
The employees' previous contract expired more than a year ago.
Yorkton Co-op General Manager Bruce Thurston said he acknowledges the workers' right to take job action, but is "disappointed" by the move.
"Nobody wins in this: the company doesn't win, the employees don't win, and certainly the customers are the ones that are hurt most by this."
Olynick said the union is looking to return to negotiations and is waiting on a new bargaining date.
The RWDSU represents more than 100 co-op employees in Yorkton.
