Court restricts union pickets at Metro warehouses, grocer says deliveries to resume

Metro has been granted a temporary injunction to restrict pickets by its striking workers at distribution warehouses in Toronto.

The Montreal-based grocer says deliveries will resume and stores will be resupplied as soon as possible.

Metro announced it was seeking an injunction against Unifor and the workers on Friday, the third day of picketing at its distribution warehouses that prevented deliveries of fresh products to its stores provincewide.

More than 3,700 workers at 27 Metro stores in the Greater Toronto Area have been on strike since July 29 after rejecting their first tentative agreement.

The order restricts the pickets from unlawfully blocking or delaying access to multiple Metro distribution centres and corporate offices, but allows them to delay delivery vehicles for up to five minutes.

Unifor spokesperson Paul Whyte told CBC News in an email that the union and management were back at the bargaining table Tuesday.

“The union remains focused on achieving a fair collective agreement to end the strike with a contract that provides decent work and pay to frontline grocery workers,” he said. “As a gesture of good faith Unifor will discontinue picketing at Metro warehouses, although entitled to continue doing so as per the judge’s interim order.”

Metro confirmed the talks have resumed.