27-05-2025
More than 8,300 Hudson's Bay employees will be out of a job by next week, others to lose disability benefits
By the time Hudson's Bay Co. winds up the last of its liquidation sales this coming Sunday, the vast majority of its employees – more than 8,300 people – will have been terminated by the company without severance payments.
Canada's oldest retailer will return to court next Tuesday, June 3, to seek an order that will instead trigger employees' entitlement to benefits under the federal government's Wage Earner Protection Program, which is designed to pay severance to workers whose companies are bankrupt or in receivership.
Court documents filed on Monday also confirmed that many current and former Hudson's Bay employees who receive long-term disability benefits will lose that support as of June 15.
Hudson's Bay filed for protection from its creditors under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) on March 7.
The maximum eligible amount under the Wage Earner Protection Program is $8,844.22 per employee, according to law firm Ursel Phillips Fellows Hopkinson LLP, which was recently appointed by the court as representative counsel for the HBC employees.
In a statement, lawyer Susan Ursel wrote that the move would be 'good news' for current and former employees.
Roughly 189 people will soon lose their disability benefits, a group whose payments were covered under an 'administrative services only' (ASO) arrangement, which were paid out of the company's own cash. Last month, The Globe reported on the existence of the ASO plan, and the employees' concerns that their benefits could disappear.
Another 100 to 200 current and former employees receive benefits under an insured plan; their benefits will continue to be paid.
Hudson's Bay has already cut off other benefits: on April 30, roughly 2,200 retirees lost their health and dental benefits and life insurance policies that were provided by Hudson's Bay.
The company and its senior lenders, along with the lawyers for the employees, 'continue to explore the possibility of implementing a hardship fund or structure to provide monetary assistance to current and former employees who are experiencing financial difficulty after the loss of their benefits,' Hudson's Bay chief operating officer and chief financial officer Michael Culhane wrote in an affidavit filed with the court on Monday.
Ms. Ursel wrote in her statement that the parties are also exploring 'other avenues of alleviation for affected employees and will advise as developments allow.'
Hudson's Bay has been letting store employees go as their locations' closing dates – which vary – have approached. All of the company's 96 stores across Canada will be closed by June 1.
At that time, the remaining 1,107 staff will assist with the wind-up of the business, including clearing out furniture and fixtures from the stores, according to court documents. Another approximately 900 employees will lose their jobs on June 15, with the rest remaining to assist with winding up the company's operations.
Unifor, the union that represents nearly 600 employees who worked at the company's e-commerce distribution centre as well as stores in Mississauga and Kitchener, Ont., has called on the Bay to honour its severance agreements.
On Tuesday, Unifor planned solidarity rallies in Toronto and Windsor, Ont., to push the company to 'prioritize workers' wages, pensions, and benefits during its liquidation process,' according to a news release.
