A group of 75 call centre workers just became Unifor’s newest telecom unit after saying, “enough is enough” with unfair pay and a lack of accountability from management

“It’s a brave thing to do, to form a union with your co-workers and take that concrete action to improve your working conditions,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “That’s exactly what these call centre workers did when they reached out to our union, they took the first step towards having a better job.”

The new unit is made up of approximately 75 workers at AllianceOne Ltd. In Toronto, a subsidiary of Teleperformance. The members provide customer support services for Toyota Financial Services and Echo Health.

“Many of the new members are newcomers to Canada, and they felt taken advantage of at times. By forming a union, workers can ensure that their rights on the job are protected,” said Unifor Ontario Regional Director Samia Hashi.

Other workplace issues identified during the organizing drive were different wages for workers doing the same job, a lack of consistency and communication from management, and a lack of alignment in terms of benefits with AllianceOne workers in the U.S.

Now, the newly formed union at AllianceOne will be empowered to bargain across the table with their employers and advocate for much-needed changes at work.