The LCBO may go on strike for the first time ever on July 28. That's if the 5,400 employees follow union advice and reject a contract offer on July 22. Why should they vote no? Because a yes vote, say union reps, would allow the Liberals to privatize liquor stores, while voting no will keep the LCBO in public hands. But Finance Minister Greg Sorbara has already refused recommendations to allow grocery stores to compete with the LCBO and The Beer Store. And I like his call. If we go private, we'll be going down a slippery slope of Americanization. First we'll be able to buy liquor at gas stations, but what's next? The death penalty for marijuana possession?
posted by sam-i-am @ 3:58 p.m.
5 Comments:
On a somewhat unrelated note, listen to this: http://tariq.f2o.org/mary/11-the_streets-the_irony_of_it_all.mp3
hella funny.
Pardon my western bias, but the LCBO is bullshit. Privatized liquor sales creates competitive prices, more product availability and you can buy a bottle of wine after 6pm on a Sunday. Liquor in convenience stores and grocery stores is another bottle of whisky all together.
Privatized liquor sales creates competitive prices, more product availability and you can buy a bottle of wine after 6pm on a Sunday.
Sorry for my Eastern French, but that's pure bullshit. Well.. except perhaps for the Sunday bit, but really -- if it's Sunday at 6pm and you don't already have a bottle of wine, you're doing something wrong ;)
Anyway, liquor (or, rather "beverage alcohol") is cheap in Ontario thanks to the fact that the LCBO buys in such vastly enormous quantities -- they're the largest single purchaser of those products in the world. The World.
During the dark and tumultuous times of the world tequila shortage a couple of years ago, guess who not only had most of it, but also the best prices (outside of Mexico, of course)? Ontario's LCB.
They brought in over a billion dollars in '04-'05 before taxes, import duties, etc., and have generated nearly $6 billion in revenues for the province over the past 5 years.
Because of this, they can offer a much broader selection of products than any single private retailer could ever hope for - even with help from the intertrons.
They stock 3500 items on their regular shelves, and 4400 more through Vintages. Yes, at the Summerhill LCBO, there are nearly 8000 different types of alcoholic beverages for sale. If they don't stock what you want, you can order it through their catalogue of over 15,000 products. They can afford to keep $3500 bottles of cognac in stock.
Jimmy's Booze-R-Us is not going to achieve those sorts of numbers if they deregulate alcohol sales. There's no way they could hope to offer that kind of variety.
Walmart and their ilk might have a shot, but Walmart and their ilk aren't offering to cough up $6 billion over the next five years for the province, so why should we be doing them any [more] favours?
And that's honestly what this issue comes down to -- how do you replace those $6 billion in lost revenues without also allowing the province to become the world's largest pot-grower or pimp?
Whoa...look who's ready to walk the picket line...
I am with Nicole - a fellow Westerner...who'd have guessed?
I hate the LCBO - Good Selection, but my god...by the time you eventually find one it's closed.
I am all about the off-sales on every second corner at all hours.
i'm usually not for big business either. down with the corporation!
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