Fantasia Film Festival workers adopt agreement in principle

Unionized employees at the Fantasia film festival voted 100% in favor of a tentative agreement. In this photo taken on December 11, 2023, moviegoers watch a film at a cinema in Warsaw, Poland (Michal Dyjuk/The Canadian Press).

The labour dispute at the Fantasia Film Festival has been settled.

On Tuesday, employees voted unanimously in favour of a tentative agreement reached on July 12, announced union group the Syndicat des employé-es de l'événementiel-CSN, Fantasia section, on Wednesday.

This is their first collective agreement.

In June, members unanimously voted for five days' strike action to be taken at the appropriate time. They also left the job last Thursday hoping to advance discussions at the bargaining table.

"The perseverance and exemplary mobilization of the employees paid off, forcing the employer to listen to the workers' demands," the union said in a press release.

"We had to stay on our feet until the very end to succeed in obtaining significant gains to curb our precariousness. With this first collective agreement, we're laying the groundwork for improving our working conditions," said Justine Smith, a member of the negotiating committee for the Syndicat des employé-es de l'événementiel--CSN, section Fantasia.