Workers walking to protest Loblaw

Union workers for some Loblaw-owned stores in Quebec are walking more than 400 miles to the retailer’s headquarters in a show of determination to renew contract negotiations.

Workers began their trek Saturday in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec, where employees backed by the CSN union are seeking to settle disputes affecting area Loblaw, Maxi and Provigo stores. The workers anticipate concluding the walk at Loblaw’s head office in Brampton, Ontario, July 2.

Workers are demanding a better quality of working life and the protection of existing rights. Labor disputes in the area include a lockout of Maxi and Provigo workers in 2012 and a strike affecting a Loblaw store a year ago.