This Saskatoon motel changed ownership. Is it required to deal with the old workers’ union?

Confederation Inn, 3330 Fairlight Drive Saskatoon. (Chad Leroux / CTV Saskatoon)

Saskatchewan’s Labour Relations Board has ruled the new owners of Saskatoon’s Confederation Inn must bargain with the union that has represented staff at the motel since 1989.

Since winning a certification vote in 1989, United Food and Commercial Workers 1400 (UFCW 1400) has negotiated nine collective agreements on behalf of workers at the motel.

Over that time the motel at 3330 Fairlight Drive in Saskatoon has operated as the Confederation Flag Inn and the Confederation Inn, and gone through a series of different owners — most recently 10190588 Sask. Ltd., which last negotiated an agreement with UFCW 1400 in 2022.

But when the motel was sold again in June 2023, its new owner Confederation Inn Corporation disputed whether the deal also transferred the union representing its staff, and their collective agreement.

UFCW 1400 turned to the labour board for guidance.

In an Oct. 10 decision, labour relations board chair Kyle McCreary agreed with the union, saying the business was “acquired as a going concern,” meaning UFCW remains the workers’ representative, and the new motel owner is required to adopt the terms of the previous collective agreement for its staff.

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McCreary writes that multiple factors are used to determine successorship — which compels a new owner to adopt pre-existing labour arrangements.

The presence of legal or familial relationships between the new owner and predecessor, transfer of equipment, inventory, customer lists and contracts; transfer of logos, trademarks or the imposition of non-compete clauses can indicate a business was bought as a “going concern,” says McCreary.

“While the presence of any of these factors can be indicative of successorship, their absence is often considered inconclusive,” he says.

“Labour boards have also considered factors such as the perception of continuity of an enterprise; whether or not the employees have continued to work for the purchaser; whether or not these employees are performing the same work; and whether or not the previous management structure has been maintained.”

Whether a business is on hiatus during the transition of ownership can also factor into the decision, says McCreary.

“Depending upon the industry, the longer a property lays dormant, the more difficult it is to draw an inference of continuity.”

In the case of Confederation Inn, McCreary says the motel has operated without significant interruption and under similar names at a fixed location since 1989, and multiple owners have all dealt with UFCW 1400.

“The continuous bargaining relationship supports the Board finding that the business has operated without significant interruption and the employer has filed no evidence to support that the business was not a going concern,” he writes.

“The Board finds that UFCW has met its onus.”

Read the full labour relations board decision here.