Hudson's Bay workers denied commission pay during liquidation sales

Sophia Harris · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 22, 2025 11:45 AM EDT | Last Updated: 13 minutes ago

Hudson's Bay Co. has stopped paying committee to hundreds of cosmeticians and fragrance advisers during liquidation sales, efficaciously reducing their salaries.

These workers, besides known arsenic quality advisers, gain committee connected products sold, connected apical of their basal salary.

Hudson's Bay notified the quality advisers 12 days successful beforehand that, starting connected April 20, they would lone person basal pay, according to a company-issued letter seen by CBC News.

"Please enactment that this is simply a determination we person not taken lightly," the retailer stated successful the letter.

Unifor, the national that represents dozens of quality advisers successful Ontario, has filed a grievance against Hudson's Bay, arguing that the committee chopped violates its members' corporate agreement.

"This institution is treating liquidation similar a free-for-all wherever contracts and basal decency nary longer apply," Unifor's Ontario determination director, Samia Hashi, said successful a statement. "Workers are being kept successful the acheronian and their wage is being chopped without negotiation."

In March, indebted Hudson's Bay was granted creditor extortion arsenic it tries to find a purchaser by the extremity of the period to enactment afloat. The bulk of the company's 9,300 employees are acceptable to suffer their jobs erstwhile liquidation income wrapper up connected June 15 astatine astir of its section stores.

CBC News spoke with respective quality advisers distraught implicit the nonaccomplishment of committee pay, which they accidental volition mean a important simplification successful their take-home pay.

"We're not blessed astir it, due to the fact that it's our livelihood," said a quality advisor who works astatine a Hudson's Bay successful British Columbia, wherever employees aren't represented by Unifor. CBC News is withholding the person's sanction due to the fact that they fearfulness repercussions from the retailer for speaking with the media.

Speaking astir their ain case, the quality advisor said they're present earning conscionable supra minimum wage — $17.85 per hr successful B.C. — a driblet of much than $10 an hr compared with what they typically marque erstwhile besides earning commission.

"It's conscionable devastating due to the fact that I don't cognize however I'm going to get by," the quality advisor said. "I deliberation a batch of radical are going to person to dip into recognition cards and [get] loans probably, to beryllium capable to wage their bills."

'I deliberation it's deplorable'

Hudson's Bay did not instantly respond to questions astir eliminating committee pay.

Legal experts told CBC News that typically, employers can't importantly trim workers' salaries connected specified abbreviated announcement without their consent.

However, erstwhile a institution is nether creditor protection, employees indispensable record a assertion to effort to recoup what they're legally owed. And erstwhile the institution pays disconnected its debts, workers are stuck astatine the backmost of the line, truthful they often upwind up with small oregon nothing.

Unifor argues the quality advisers it represents shouldn't person to hold successful that line, due to the fact that committee wage is included successful their contract.

"It's a legally binding document," said Dwayne Gunness, president of Unifor Local 40, which represents 40 quality advisers.

"You can't just, midstream, [reduce] someone's pay," helium said. "I deliberation it's deplorable."

WATCH | Hudson's Bay pays large bonuses to executives but nary severance for workers:

The committee nonaccomplishment is different successful a bid of blows to Hudson's Bay workers, who learned past period that the retailer won't beryllium paying severance to laid-off employees.

Unifor, which represents a full of 595 Hudson's Bay employees, says immoderate members are entitled to upwards of $35,000 successful severance pay.

The national argues the retailer's determination not to wage severance is particularly egregious considering it's paying up to $3 cardinal successful retention bonuses to institution executives and store managers.

"Unifor volition proceed to telephone retired this injustice, support workers, and request accountability," Unifor national president Lana Payne said successful a connection successful March.

Hudson's Bay did not respond to questions astir severance and bonus pay. It's communal for indebted companies to wage retention bonuses to support cardinal staff.

Store employees person been offered overmuch smaller bonuses if they proceed moving until the extremity of liquidation sales. Beauty advisers who conscionable the criteria volition receive up to $1,000 each, according to a company-issued memo seen by CBC News.

But the quality advisor CBC News interviewed said the bonus won't marque up for what volition beryllium mislaid successful committee pay.

"All of america would person been much grateful with them really conscionable keeping the commission."

Time for change?

Hudson's Bay workers tin use for fiscal enactment done the national government's Wage Earner Protection Program, which provides fiscal assistance to workers erstwhile companies go insolvent.

But Toronto lawyer Andrew Hatnay, who represents a fig of the retailer's employees, said those who suffice volition typically person only a information of the compensation they're owed.

"They're upset and distressed," helium said astir Hudson's Bay workers he's spoken with. "They're having to look for alternate employment successful a precise pugnacious situation present with tariffs and each kinds of different economical problems."

The plight of Hudson's Bay employees has reignited calls for the national authorities to found much protections for workers erstwhile a institution becomes insolvent.

WATCH | Everything you request to cognize astir Hudson's Bay liquidation sales:

In 2023, the national authorities improved protections for workers with defined payment pension plans if their leader becomes insolvent. The authorities takes effect successful 2027.

Unifor argues workers should get different protections arsenic well, specified arsenic for severance pay.

"Focus has to beryllium enactment connected employees ... particularly erstwhile they person invested the large portion of their beingness to supporting the employer," Unifor's Gunness said.

However, the Canadian Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Professionals (CAIRP), which represents insolvency and restructuring businesses, argues that workers' rights can't travel astatine the disbursal of different creditors successful the insolvency process.

"​​Enhancing 1 country without considering the broader interaction tin unintentionally weaken others, yet undermining the effectiveness of the insolvency system," CAIRP spokesperson Angela Joyce said.

Even if Canada's recently elected premier curate does initiate much protections, they won't travel successful clip for Hudson's Bay workers, galore of whom volition soon beryllium retired of a job — and immoderate of the currency that they're owed.