UFCW activists lobby Saskatchewan MLAs on surveillance pricing, workplace violence and other key issues
Regina – May 6, 2026 – Last week, dozens of UFCW activists from the Saskatchewan Locals gathered in Regina for a lobby day with the provincial government. On April 28, activists from UFCW Locals 1400, 649 and 248P met with Ministers and MLAs from the Government and Opposition parties to discuss their union’s priorities, including concerns about surveillance pricing in grocery stores.
Other key issues included improved labour relations, workplace safety and violence prevention, protecting security guards, and National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.
UFCW members attended the legislature to support proposed NDP legislation aimed at cracking down on algorithmic pricing. Afterwards, UFCW 1400 President Lucy Figueiredo joined NDP MLA MLA Brittney Senger in speaking to the press in support of Bill (619) banning surveillance pricing.
“If you look at different regions in North America, already in the States, and in some cases here, studies have shown that the collection of data, predominantly of you as a consumer, being used to target or change prices as you're coming into shop or purchase online items, is being used,” President Figueiredo told reporters, calling for regulations to stop predatory pricing (SaskToday.ca).
“And I think that if we don't address it and highlight that there are no regulations here now, we are just allowing for our large corporate entities to continue to make an extra $0.05 or $0.10 on products from a group of workers that don't make much more than minimum wage.”
In addition to surveillance pricing, UFCW activists also met with MLAs to discuss labour relationships, workplace violence prevention, and more. For labour relations, members lobbied for anti-scab legislation, and improvements to the labour relations act to include a 60-day strike mandate and automatic first contract arbitration, similar to Manitoba.
Workplace safety advocates spoke about the mental health risks for workers in retail and food processing and security. Union members asked their elected officials to legislate improved staffing for retail and security, strengthen retail violence prevention programs, and implement policies and regulations that address workplace mental health, including paid time off.
Security work continues to be in a precarious space with little to no regulations and is increasingly hazardous due to rising safety risks. UFCW members advocated for fair compensation for security guards in Saskatchewan and for security guards to be identified as their own field with their own regulations.
UFCW activists also lobbied for Saskatchewan to follow in the steps of British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and the Yukon in making September 30 a statutory holiday for the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.
