(Toronto) Strikers at Metro grocery stores in the Greater Toronto Area are now picketing two of the grocer’s distribution warehouses, which the company says is preventing the delivery of fresh produce to stores across the province.

Local 414 President Gord Currie and National President Lana Payne meet with workers on a secondary picket line at a west Toronto warehouse.

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

Metro spokesperson Marie-Claude Bacon called on workers to return to the bargaining table, explaining that the warehouses supply all Metro grocery stores and Food Basics in Ontario and that picket lines are preventing the delivery of fresh produce at all stores.

Unifor said workers are demanding a fair share of the company’s growing profits, and many workers are demanding the restoration of their pandemic “hero’s pay” of $2 an hour.

Metro says the tentative agreement workers rejected included paid sick leave for part-time workers, benefits and pension improvements, and significant wage increases.