ZR
11-17-2016, 08:42 AM
For decades, the cases of beer contained respect for past service and tools to build community.
“It was good for the retirees and their neighbours and their families. It was good for everyone, I think,” said Labatt retiree Kevin Lomack. “It was something to give back to the communities.”
In wartime, Labatt employees and retirees turned their vouchers in and had the company send beer to soldiers, said retiree Guy Harrington.
“I don’t even drink beer. I give it to my kids and my friends.”
But the free beer for Labatt retirees will stop flowing in a couple of years, the company confirmed Monday.
“With the escalating costs associated with maintaining a full benefits package, Labatt made the reluctant decision to discontinue our free beer allotment to all retirees in Canada,” Charlie Angelakos, spokesperson for Labatt Breweries Canada, said in an emailed statement.
“We only came to this decision after benchmarking a range of Canadian beer and consumer packaged goods companies. It showed that our overall package of pension and retirement benefits are competitive and none of the companies we surveyed offered free product to retirees.”
The change will take place over two years, taking full effect in 2019, he said.
“The current allocation varies by province, and was provided to employees on an optional basis,” Angelakos said.
Labatt would not say how much money it will save with the move.
In London, employees get 26 cases of beer a year, which were free until 2006 when they became a taxable benefit, said Jeff Robinson, president of Branch Local 1 of the Service Employees International Union that represents local Labatt workers.
Retirees get eight cases of beer a year, which they’ve used for decades for neighbours and friends and family, street parties and community celebrations, Robinson said.
“They’ve felt like ambassadors and the company has always treated them like ambassadors,” he said. “I’m really, really disappointed they would try to save money on the backs of retirees.”
The union has filed a grievance over the benefit withdrawal on behalf of about 300 London-area retirees, he said.
SEIU represents about 230 full-time and 70 part-time workers at the London plant. They’re not affected by the change, Robinson said.
The decision likely will help keep Labatt retirees healthier, said a Western University law professor specializing in drug and alcohol policy.
“It’s clear that availability is a key determinant of use. It’s also clear that the lower the cost of the alcohol, the more people consume,” said Robert Solomon, who’s also national director of legal policy for Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada.
“Alcohol, freely available to *individuals, would likely increase consumption and increase all alcohol-related problems; health, trauma, falls and driving-related. Labatt’s policy of not making the alcohol available is likely going to reduce risk of all kinds among their former employees, which is a positive.”
But retirees don’t see it that way. The loss of the free beer is a sign of how Labatt has lost a connection with the community, Lomack said.
“If an employer can afford to do that kind of goodwill, it generally pays off for them in spades,” said Lomack, who retired Sept. 1 after 27 years.
“If you were the beneficiary of a case of beer, or a few bottles went your way, from a corporation that was doing the right thing for your community, you felt pretty good. And it felt pretty good to give it, too. As a retiree, I was looking forward to having my beer benefit extended.”
Founded by John Labatt in 1847 in London, the company was bought by Belgium’s Interbrew in 1995 and, after mergers, is now part of Anheuser-Busch InBev.
“It was good for the retirees and their neighbours and their families. It was good for everyone, I think,” said Labatt retiree Kevin Lomack. “It was something to give back to the communities.”
In wartime, Labatt employees and retirees turned their vouchers in and had the company send beer to soldiers, said retiree Guy Harrington.
“I don’t even drink beer. I give it to my kids and my friends.”
But the free beer for Labatt retirees will stop flowing in a couple of years, the company confirmed Monday.
“With the escalating costs associated with maintaining a full benefits package, Labatt made the reluctant decision to discontinue our free beer allotment to all retirees in Canada,” Charlie Angelakos, spokesperson for Labatt Breweries Canada, said in an emailed statement.
“We only came to this decision after benchmarking a range of Canadian beer and consumer packaged goods companies. It showed that our overall package of pension and retirement benefits are competitive and none of the companies we surveyed offered free product to retirees.”
The change will take place over two years, taking full effect in 2019, he said.
“The current allocation varies by province, and was provided to employees on an optional basis,” Angelakos said.
Labatt would not say how much money it will save with the move.
In London, employees get 26 cases of beer a year, which were free until 2006 when they became a taxable benefit, said Jeff Robinson, president of Branch Local 1 of the Service Employees International Union that represents local Labatt workers.
Retirees get eight cases of beer a year, which they’ve used for decades for neighbours and friends and family, street parties and community celebrations, Robinson said.
“They’ve felt like ambassadors and the company has always treated them like ambassadors,” he said. “I’m really, really disappointed they would try to save money on the backs of retirees.”
The union has filed a grievance over the benefit withdrawal on behalf of about 300 London-area retirees, he said.
SEIU represents about 230 full-time and 70 part-time workers at the London plant. They’re not affected by the change, Robinson said.
The decision likely will help keep Labatt retirees healthier, said a Western University law professor specializing in drug and alcohol policy.
“It’s clear that availability is a key determinant of use. It’s also clear that the lower the cost of the alcohol, the more people consume,” said Robert Solomon, who’s also national director of legal policy for Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada.
“Alcohol, freely available to *individuals, would likely increase consumption and increase all alcohol-related problems; health, trauma, falls and driving-related. Labatt’s policy of not making the alcohol available is likely going to reduce risk of all kinds among their former employees, which is a positive.”
But retirees don’t see it that way. The loss of the free beer is a sign of how Labatt has lost a connection with the community, Lomack said.
“If an employer can afford to do that kind of goodwill, it generally pays off for them in spades,” said Lomack, who retired Sept. 1 after 27 years.
“If you were the beneficiary of a case of beer, or a few bottles went your way, from a corporation that was doing the right thing for your community, you felt pretty good. And it felt pretty good to give it, too. As a retiree, I was looking forward to having my beer benefit extended.”
Founded by John Labatt in 1847 in London, the company was bought by Belgium’s Interbrew in 1995 and, after mergers, is now part of Anheuser-Busch InBev.