August 2016: Unifor decided to support Rogers application for a new regional multi cultural channel based on assurances by Rogers they would reinstate 3rd language news programming using our members.

Their application was far from ideal, but better than the community affairs programming they were producing for their OMNI channels.

May 2017: The CRTC awarded Rogers a rare mandatory carriage licence (similar to APTN’s licence) with Broadcast Decision 2017-152.  With this decision Rogers is set to receive up to 14 million dollars in cable fees over the next three years to produce multicultural programming; including four daily regional news programs in Cantonese, Mandarin, Punjabi and Italian.

July 2017: Rogers informed Unifor of their plan to contract out the production of Cantonese and Mandarin daily news programs to a competitor, Fairchild New Media.  Unifor expressed our dissatisfaction with Rogers decision and secured a letter of understanding guaranteeing the production of Italian, Portuguese and Punjabi news will remain in-house, with our members.

September 2017: Unifor has filed a complaint with the CRTC using a Part 1 Application: 2017-975-0.  Unifor Local 723M has also filed a grievance through their Collective Agreement.

Unifor’s Part 1 Application describes how Rogers is breaching their Conditions of Licence and failing to do what they promised when they applied for a mandatory carriage licence.

Unifor responded to Rogers position by pointing out Rogers continues to be in violation of their Conditions of Licence and the CRTC should hold an expedited hearing and order Rogers to produce Cantonese and Mandarin news programs in-house as they are required to.