To the Canadian Members of Parliament: The Challenges of Operating a Manufacturing Business in Canada
Washington, DC, USA – June 10, 2024
Best Theratronics (BTL) was acquired by Dr. Krishnan Suthanthiran on May 1, 2008, from what was then MDS Nordion. In the coming weeks, Suthanthiran intends to issue a series of press releases explaining the challenges of operating a manufacturing company in Canada, particularly in a non-French speaking province. He intends to highlight the historical bias and unequal treatment of English-speaking province citizens by Canada's Prime Ministers for more than half a century.
BTL employees receive Crown Corporation benefits, which include paid holidays for Good Friday and the Monday after Easter. The cafeteria at BTL provides free meals for all employees and visitors, offering a variety of healthy options such as juices, breakfast cereals, fruits, milk, coffee, tea, soups, fresh cut vegetables, turkey breast slices with gravy, cheese, a variety of breads, yogurt, etc.. The cafeteria operates from 6:30 AM to 2:30 PM during work days.
Many employees have four meals a day — breakfast, mid-morning break, lunch, and mid-afternoon break. The entire manufacturing area of 100,000 square feet was air-conditioned by Suthanthiran upon his purchase (previous owners left it without air conditioning for over 60 years).
The cafeteria was run by a contractor before Suthanthiran took over, and there weren't many healthy food options available. Employees were spending up to $30 per day on food, using their after-tax income. The Union presented Suthanthiran with a plaque to show their appreciation for making the work environment more comfortable.
Three months ago, the unions brought in a mediator to negotiate with Suthanthiran's team. They aimed to address the significant decline in opportunities and less than 50% productivity of USA operations and to negotiate a pay increase for union staff. One of the mediator's recommendations was to stop providing free cafeteria access to staff.
Suthanthiran did not want the cafeteria no longer to be free for staff and visitors. He felt that all members of the staff are his family, and he wants everyone to have healthy meals during their work hours free of charge. The mediator and Suthanthiran's team agreed to meet in mid-July, after BTL has addressed other challenges, such as the huge losses of business opportunities due to being located in Canada, that too in a non-French speaking province of Ontario, Canada.
BTL employees were compelled by UNIFOR and PSAC-Union leaders to go on strike in an attempt to damage the company. It's unclear why the BTL manufacturing employees are enduring sweltering heat, humid conditions, using portable toilets, and having to pay for unhealthy fast food every day, when they could have continued working in a fully air-conditioned environment and enjoyed free, healthy meals up to four times a day.
The unions are forcing BTL's manufacturing operations to move out of Canada. They are also harming the employees' health, safety, and welfare and creating hostility between the management and BTL employees by not honoring the agreement made with the management team three months ago.
UNIFOR membership at BTL has declined by 50% over the past 10 years. Within Canada, UNIFOR membership has declined by almost 200,000 over the same period. Neither UNIFOR nor PSAC members have as good a benefit package as BTL employees.
Suthanthiran was taught by his parents and grandparents not to bite the hand that feeds — or undermine those who support you. This situation has no winners — the union leaders are damaging Canadian businesses, hurting union members, and shipping manufacturing jobs to other countries.
Nortel, Blackberry, and Bombardier in Canada have either completely exited or significantly reduced their manufacturing operations in Canada. It's unfortunate that union members are paying dues with their hard-earned money and receiving bad advice that is causing harm to them.
For more information, Click here to download the original press release.