Sidhu certification stands

The British Columbia Labour Relations Board (BCLRB) has upheld its March 2010 decision to certify a UFCW Canada Local 1518 bargaining unit of more than 70 seasonal migrant agriculture workers at Sidhu & Sons Nurseries in the Lower Mainland.

Sidhu had appealed the certification, but on April 26 the BCLRB dismissed the action. In its written decision the BCLRB reconfirmed that the Sidhu unit, comprised of  workers who come to Canada under Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP), was appropriate and fulfilled "the Code's key objectives in this area: access to collective bargaining and industrial stability."

First contract negotiations are expected to begin later this month.