Newspaper ads slam Best Western Seven Oaks


REGINA, SASKATCHEWAN--(Marketwired - Feb. 24, 2016) - With striking workers at the Best Western Seven Oaks Inn now entering the second month of their effort to achieve fairness at work, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW Canada) is releasing a series of full-page newspaper ads slamming the hotel for refusing to treat its employees fairly.

The Best Western employees, who are members of UFCW Canada Local 1400, work at the company's Seven Oaks location in Regina, Saskatchewan, and were forced out on strike by their employer last December. They have been braving the freezing winter cold for more than eight weeks to secure a fair contract that provides a living wage, fair benefits, and back pay.

The newspaper ads, launched today in the Regina Leader-Post, inform readers that UFCW Canada members have "serious reservations about Best Western Seven Oaks," and ask readers to find out more about the hotel workers' fight for fairness at ufcw.ca/bestwestern.

The newspaper ads follow a series of radio advertisements that UFCW Canada ran in Regina earlier this month, which called on the public to support the employees at Seven Oaks by respecting their picket line and avoiding the hotel until the strike is over. The print ads are being accompanied by a comprehensive online ad campaign on Facebook and Google, demanding fairness for the hard-working men and women at Best Western Seven Oaks.

Despite the union's willingness to negotiate, Best Western refuses to get back to the bargaining table, and the workers' requests for a living wage, fair benefits, and back pay have been flatly rejected by the company.

"We're willing to sit down at the table at any time, as the members are eager to negotiate a fair contract," says Norm Neault, President of UFCW Canada Local 1400. "But the company refuses to budge on several key issues, and so our fight for fairness continues," he adds.

To advance the call for a fair contract, the workers and their families are asking consumers, supporters, and friends to join the campaign for fairness at Best Western Seven Oaks by sending a letter to Best Western's President and CEO, David Kong.

With the full backing of the UFCW Canada National Office and its Local Unions, the Seven Oaks workers have received strong support from local residents, the federal New Democratic Party (NDP), the Regina & District Labour Council, and a number of other unions.

The striking workers' fight for fairness has also garnered local and national media coverage from CBC News, The Regina Leader-Post, Rabble, and RankAndFile.ca, among several other media outlets.

On Monday, the Best Western employees were joined by community members, local activists, and labour allies from across Regina and Saskatchewan in a march of solidarity outside the Seven Oaks Inn, where participants called on the company to return to the bargaining table to negotiate a fair contract.

You can lend your support to the campaign for fairness at Best Western Seven Oaks by visiting ufcw.ca/bestwestern and sending a message to the company today.

Contact Information:

Norm Neault
President
UFCW Canada Local 1400
306-384-5787
norm@ufcw1400.ca
www.ufcw1400.ca