Galen Weston Jr., the mild-mannered, bespectacled grocery-store magnate you may recognize from President’s Choice commercials, is a thoroughly Canadian one-percenter. Newspapers Limited, One Yonge Street, 4th floor, Toronto, ON, M5E 1E6. In comparison, the province's minimum wage is currently $11.35 per hour, but will increase to $12.65 on June 1. Torontoist has been acquired by Daily Hive Toronto - Your City. The report’s author, CCPA Senior Economist David Macdonald, said the growing gap between CEOs and the average employee is particularly stark as several of these business leaders—Loblaw Cos. CEO Galen G. Weston, for instance—have been vocal opponents of raising the minimum wage. Galen Weston on temporarily increased wages for our workers - Duration: 1:01. Last year's profits, over a billion dollars and these are the people that want us to work at minimum wage. This copy is for your personal non-commercial use only. Last year, our friend Avi Lewis debated Doug Ford on CTV’s Question Period. (Loblaw is one of Canada’s largest private sector employers, employing more than 192,000 full-time and part-time workers in the country.). However, while it’s shameful it’s not at all surprising. To order copies of Galen G. Weston, one of the world’s richest people, thinks common folk should be paid more. ST. JOHN’S– Striking workers at Loblaw Co. owned Dominion stores call on billionaire Loblaw Chairman Galen Weston to pay employees a living wage and to stop the overuse of part-time employees to do full-time work in a new ad, launched on Newfoundland television and Facebook today. to colleagues, clients or customers, or inquire about They want them to do the work of a full timer with part time wages. Galen Weston. He’s chosen to portray his. They may point to the hypocrisy of a wealthy business leader such as Weston pinching his pennies so tightly—an easy, though not inappropriate, target. Second, he will only pay a living wage if government forces him to. Stagnant wages and rising housing costs—average rent in Toronto just passed $2,000 a month—means his workers aren’t just squeezed, they’re living in poverty. Posting on an anonymous account because Weston has already fired 500 workers and closed 22 stores after the minimum wage increase! May 15. Weston is very concerned about a tiny increase to the minimum wage, but a maximum wage is what we should really be talking about. We use cookies and other technologies to enable core functionality on our website(s) and to provide you with a personalized experience. Beforehand, he had held positions in the company for eight years and was a member on their board of directors. He predicted the company’s labour costs will jump by about $190 million next year. And it means politicians, if they lack a compelling ideological reason not to, are likely to gravitate toward the locus of money and power as a way to stay in office. ... Galen Weston. However, while it’s shameful it’s not at all surprising. And those cost money. Weston may not even need to take those measures; he’s not shouting into the void with his worries about paying higher wages. 1:01. Weston addressed the pay issue in his letter, saying he’s a “strong believer in a progressive minimum wage,” adding he would support “any government-led effort to establish a living wage.” Loblaws to install plexiglass shields at registers, ... Chris Selley: A $15 minimum wage could have victims — Loblaws cashiers, for example. Weston and Loblaws have a long record of putting profits over people. They may point to the hypocrisy of a wealthy business leader such as Weston pinching his pennies so tightly—an easy, though not inappropriate, target. With an election looming next year, Premier Kathleen Wynne may decide it upsets business leaders and potential donors too much. Loblaws workers need all the love they can get now that the company’s CEO, Galen G. Weston, has framed the move to increase the minimum wage in … In Toronto where rent averages $2,000 a month, that means living in poverty. Nor is it surprising that, , Weston’s company is looking to mitigate this increase in labour costs by “digitizing manual invoice jobs and rolling out more self-checkouts at its Shoppers Drug Mart locations,” which is to say, cutting jobs. last year, and, despite that generous—one might even say obscene—level of wealth, he remains staunchly opposed to paying his employees enough money to live on. “These are the people who are living with the consequences of Galen Weston’s … CEO Galen Weston urged shareholders to vote against the idea. The organizers also single out Loblaw's chairman and CEO, Galen Weston Jr., who opposed recent minimum wage hikes. Big business billionaires like Galen Weston are the biggest threat to the minimum wage increases. Never mind that Loblaw Companies Limited profits continue to smash new records and that Weston’s personal wealth is in excess of $8 billion, Weston wanted you to feel bad for him and his company because they couldn’t pay the poverty wages to his workers. It does not behoove a company with dreams of wealth and success to pay its workers more than it needs to. Contact us. Weston took over Loblaw Companies Limited in October 2006. He is thoroughly of the one percent in the sense that his family is worth somewhere in the ballpark of $9 billion, he himself earned at least $5 million last year, and, despite that generous—one might even say obscene—level of wealth, he remains staunchly opposed to paying his employees enough money to live on. Nor is it surprising that, as CBC reported, Weston’s company is looking to mitigate this increase in labour costs by “digitizing manual invoice jobs and rolling out more self-checkouts at its Shoppers Drug Mart locations,” which is to say, cutting jobs. rights reserved. The problem is not precisely Weston’s comments, galling though they are. Social programs alleviate the need to raise the minimum wage, after all: The more people’s needs are provided for by the government, the less they need to take home in cash pay to survive. Sarah Davis, the Loblaw CEO, received a total compensation of $6.7 million in 2019. Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. In that debate, Doug Ford made it perfectly clear that he would rather stand with Loblaws CEO Galen Weston, who has engaged in price-fixing schemes, evaded taxes and threatened to lay off workers, than pay a $15 minimum wage. After all, the company reported a second-quarter profit $200 million higher this year than last, up to $358 million from $158 million. About. President's Choice 685 views. In 2017, Galen Weston Jr actively lobbied against government action to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. That's all he's seeing is money, money, money, as long as he can take care of himself and his family, that's all that he cares about. With less in earnings, workers are paying less into their pensions, and, shut out of a wildly expensive housing market, they face astronomical rents and eventually the very real prospect of homelessness in old age. Shame on you, Galen Weston! The fact that Galen Weston Jr. can sit on his family’s billions and decry the prospect of paying a not-even-living wage is all the more reason to consider asking the Westons of the nation to contribute their fair share. A majority of small- and medium-sized business owners support a $15 or higher minimum wage because they know that a higher paid, respected worker saves them the steep price of high staff turnover. Loblaw chairman Galen Weston has said that his employees have adjusted to the "new normal" so a $2 bonus an hour is no longer ... And what about your coworkers who are making minimum wage otherwise? It’s too soon for Galen Weston and Loblaws to end wage subsidies for his grocery workers on the front lines of the pandemic Wed., June 17, 2020 timer 1 … In fact, it behooves companies to pay as little as possible. Galen Weston Jr CEO and President as well as a major shareholder of Loblaw companies which include Loblaws, Shoppers Drug Mart, No Frills, Superstore, Fortinos, Zehrs & Provigo, is worth $9.5 billion but he doesn't want to even take the small first step of committing his company to a feasibility study to see whether paying a living wage is possible. He’s chosen to portray his nearly $14 billion company as the victim of unfavourable legislation. He predicted the company’s labour costs will jump by about $190 million next year. presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution It’s shameful that we don’t discuss it in that way, just as it’s shameful that the man at the helm of one of Canada’s largest employers is comfortable rejecting measures that would improve the well-being of the people who work for him, both as a moral obligation and as an economic one. Weston knows this, and he’s surely lobbying hard to help sway her. The organization holds Weston responsible for opposing a $15 minimum wage, engaging in tax avoidance via offshore holdings, firing 500 workers and closing 22 stores in response to an increase in minimum wage, and being caught in a 14 year bread price fixing scam. Increasing the minimum wage is not just good for workers, but also for individual businesses and the wider economy Rather than address the fact that such a huge jump means his company is paying many of its employees below $15 right now—which equals to, in, , poverty-level wages. Feb-26,2021 13:56 Likes： 0 Retweets： 0 He is thoroughly Canadian in the sense that he isn’t flashy or grandiose like Richard Branson, and he doesn’t tout the benefits of vampirism or plot to destroy the free press, à la real-life super villain Peter Thiel. Republication or distribution of this content is The Westons have also left their mark in the Global South. It’s time that Loblaw workers got their fair share of the pie with a living wage based on the cost of living for where they work. This will come as no surprise to anyone, but businesses succeed by growing their profits, and they grow their profits in part by keeping their costs down. All of this—the minimum wage hikes, Weston’s response, and his threats to cut jobs, the possibility that a cowed politician could roll back the gains for workers she’s tentatively inching toward—shows the problems inherent in taking an incrementalist approach to improving people’s lives. It’s shameful that we don’t discuss it in that way, just as it’s shameful that the man at the helm of one of Canada’s largest employers is comfortable rejecting measures that would improve the well-being of the people who work for him, both as a moral obligation and as an economic one. Galen Weston Jr., the mild-mannered, bespectacled grocery-store magnate you may recognize from President’s Choice commercials, is a thoroughly Canadian one-percenter. “I continue to be a strong believer in a progressive minimum wage … Weston, said to be the scion of the third-richest family in Canada, is quoted as saying he “would support any government effort to establish a living wage.”. Have questions? It’s rare to see reporting go as far as Vice’s Money vertical did in laying out just how little that minimum wage actually is ($25,877 per year in Ontario after taxes and deductions, assuming an employee is full-time and permanent), hinting at the hardships workers are forced to face by employers like Weston. It’s a sad indictment of Loblaw that Galen Weston actively lobbied the government against raising the minimum wage. This tells me two things about Galen Weston: First, he concedes that he is currently not paying a living wage. Also a disclaimer: I really want this to be seen because I'm actually so mad so I'll be posting on other threads as well! Galen on evolving COVID-19 measures. Galen Weston Jr, the chairman of Loblaw Companies Limited, has a net worth of $10.9 billion. September 29, 2020. Well-paid workers means more people are buying goods and services, mind you, not necessarily at his stores. It leaves workers with dramatically less power and uncertain about who is on their side and thus uncertain about who to hold to account or how. Weston said the rise in the minimum wage would cost his company roughly $190 million and would be a significant headwind to his business. Galen Weston | National Post. In one of the world’s wealthiest nations, it is a moral crime that anyone should be unable to afford a home, food, medicine, and anything else they need to live in comfort. Now. Who we are What we do Responsibility COVID-19. Only 1 actual quote from Galen and then the author veers off into into pushing her own pet cause by decrying the $15 minimum wage as doomed to fail because of lobbying and makes vague overtures at overthrowing capitalism based on the presumption of said failure. permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com, Loblaw, Metro end COVID-19 wage hike, June 12, Galen Weston is quoted as saying now “is the right time to end the temporary pay premium we introduced at the beginning of the pandemic.”. The Westons gained attention this year for speaking out against “aggressive” minimum wage hike plans for Ontario and Alberta, which Galen Weston Jr.—who took over his father’s post as executive chairman of George Weston Ltd. last year—estimates would cost the food-processing and distribution company another $190 million in annual expenses. As can be expected, few, if any, media outlets reporting on Weston’s remarks touched on this at all. If radical changes aren’t made to the way we provide for each other, and what we expect of the most privileged, it’s going to be a grim future for most of us. He is thoroughly Canadian in the sense that he isn’t flashy or grandiose like Richard Branson, and he doesn’t tout the benefits of. The problem is that, in the economic system in which we currently live, that attitude is perfectly logical and, in fact, beneficial to the system’s overall operation. If her overtures to workers threaten to throw her standing in the business community into turmoil, she could easily back down. So it seems this is not the time to be pulling money out of the pocket of his staff, who continue to make him richer by working on the front lines in his stores. Galen Weston, executive chairman of Loblaw, first outlined the $2-per-hour bonus in mid-March, saying that Loblaw would pay store and distribution centre … Never mind that Loblaw Companies Limited profits continue to smash new records and that Weston’s personal wealth is in excess of $8 billion, Weston wanted you to feel bad for him and his company because they couldn’t pay the poverty wages to his workers. A full-time minimum wage worker takes home $25,877. To order At that point, the company was worth around $9.5 billion. A record number of young Canadians are living at home into adulthood, and those numbers are even higher in the country’s most expensive housing markets. In 2017, Weston took heat … 1:01. All Tinkering at the edges of a capitalist economy leaves the people and institutions with money and power—capital, in more ways than one—well-positioned to find ways around whatever meagre advances are made at their expense. expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Toronto ), As can be expected, few, if any, media outlets reporting on Weston’s remarks touched on this at all. “We are flagging a significant set of financial headwinds,”, in reference to the long-overdue wage increases set to come into effect over the next few years. Weston said the rise in the minimum wage would cost his company roughly $190 million and would be a significant headwind to his business. ... to be a strong believer in a progressive minimum wage and would support any government-led effort to establish a living wage. Photo via strategyonline.ca. Precarious work is keeping those same workers from any sort of income security, even when they can find work. Labour is one such cost. Filed under no frills, capitalism, Fight for 15, Galen Weston, Labour Rights, living wage, loblaws, Maximum wage, Shoppers Drug Mart, The Westons. Loblaw Co. Ltd. chairman Galen Weston Jr., is, with a fortune of $10.04 billion (USD), is one of the five wealthiest people in Canada. It’s rare to see reporting go as far as. On December 31, 2017 Galen Weston Jr. "won" labour organization RankandFile.ca's 2017 Scumbag of the Year award. Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com, The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star In one of the world’s wealthiest nations, it is a moral crime that anyone should be unable to afford a home, food, medicine, and anything else they need to live in comfort. Galen Weston, Loblaw CEO, took home a whopping $7.5 million last year, and yet he’s been one of the most vocal opponents of minimum wage increases. Cashiers at the Loblaws Maple Leaf Gardens, who could soon be replaced with self-checkout machines. Last week, he expressed concerns that raising the minimum wage will cut into his company’s profits. Rather than address the fact that such a huge jump means his company is paying many of its employees below $15 right now—which equals to, in most Canadian cities, poverty-level wages. (Loblaw is one of Canada’s largest private sector employers, employing more than 192,000 full-time and part-time workers in the country. This is a subject worth talking about but this is just a shit article. as the victim of unfavourable legislation. Photo by Craig White via Torontoist’s Flickr Pool. I just checked; COVID will be not be ending soon. “We are flagging a significant set of financial headwinds,” Weston said in reference to the long-overdue wage increases set to come into effect over the next few years. I wonder which information source led Weston to this conclusion. It’s true that a modest hike to the minimum wage is unfavourable to a profit-seeking entity, but it beggars belief that Weston or his company are the ones holding the short end of any stick. Galen talks about getting help to those in greater need. In Toronto where rent averages $2,000 a month, that means living in poverty. Galen Weston Knows Paying a Living Wage is Bad for Capitalism A full-time minimum wage worker takes home $25,877. The prospect of impending minimum-wage hikes in Ontario and Alberta, where employers will soon be required to pay the kingly sum of $15 per hour, elicited a strong reaction from the George Weston Ltd. CEO (which owns Loblaws, Shoppers Drug Mart, and No Frills, among other chains and brands) last week. But this was not because the company cares about its workers, as Galen Weston has long opposed legislation to raise the minimum wage to $15/hr. Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. Canada.
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